July 21

Daylight crept intrusively past my eyelids. I was tired, too tired. I fought the sensation and rolled over. The warm body of my wife lay welcomingly beside me. I snuggled in tight, my fight against wakefulness victorious. I held her tight and went back into my dreams.

When I climbed back out of my slumber I glanced at my clock. It was 7:50, time to move.  A nagging doubt crept into my being. I had something I was supposed to do… With a shock of realization and frustration, I sat up from my slumber. I rolled out of bed with a sick feeling inside. I was supposed to be somewhere. Yet I needed to sleep and get recharged.  It has been a crazy few days.

My zoom meeting! I was missing a zoom meeting that started at 7:30. Who the heck schedules a 7:30 meeting in the middle of summer? Apparently I needed to move and quickly ran a brush through my hair. I fired up my computer and joined the meeting in progress. I can think of better ways to start my day.

I had so many plans for the day. I had paperwork to do, I had cleaning to do and I needed to get our new bedroom suite from City Furniture. I started with the paperwork. As time rolled by I hoped to get some stuff accomplished. I quit my job for a reason. I was getting too busy and something had to give.

Then Captain Rob called. There was a mix up with a booking. Now it was time for me to help him out. There was a mistake with a tour and they were expecting to go on our boat at 11:00 am on July 21. He had them in for July 31. A simple mistake, he wanted me to cover the tour., he wasn’t able to. Like I was? Life could be much worse. An emergency boat tour on a thirty-plus degree day didn’t seem like too much hardship.

I threw out my plans for the day and got myself together to head for the dock. My group was meeting me there at 1:00 and I needed to get the tube and pick them up. With only moments to spare, I raced to the slip to prepare the boat and grab the tube.

The tube was sagging listlessly against the boat. Empty. A flat tube was not on my list of good things to deal with today. I unleashed it and dragged it half full of water onto the dock. My back screamed in protest but with the help of a fellow boater, we managed to place it out of the water. I left it draining and lying flat like a dog that lost its home.

I pulled up to the dock and donned my mask. I was ready to go and do my best to make it up to the stranded group of tourists that waited for me. With no tube, I hoped they would be ok.  They weren’t, they told me the tour wouldn’t work without one. I looked to the girls in the gas dock and pleaded with them to rent me one of their tubes. The nice pretty young girl with the mask on smiled at me with her eyes and said we could take one of theirs. Grateful and excited the group from Vancouver boarded Serendipity and we proceeded to head out onto our wonderful lake. It was a hot day that felt like the perfect one to be on a boat.

The joy experienced and shared with my guests was a thrilling feeling that I hope never tires on me. The three intrepid kids jumped joyfully onto the towable disc and held on tight as we spun them back and forth behind my vessel.

Time passed quickly on the water and the ladies tried to water-ski. I accelerated up and out of the water cheering for them, they struggled and pulled, but to no avail. I felt their sadness and frustration that they could not rise up from the water and skim across the surface on the skis. I wanted very badly for them to succeed. But in their failure, they were satiated with the effort. At least they tried to get up. They did their best. It was in the attempt they had to gain the satisfaction. Sometimes success can only be gained from the effort.

I stayed out a little longer and gave them a few extra minutes to connect. The two wives and their loving kids were grateful and thrilled to have spent three hours on the lake. I was happy to have been called away from my duties and spent the time on the water. I am not sure when I will have time to set up our bedroom suite and finish my paperwork. But I am grateful that in these moments that is the worst of my problems. First world problems I will handle with a smile.