June
9, 2001
At Sea
Magic in the Night, Another Moment of Bliss
By Gunter  
I had the first night watch from 2100 to midnight and then the early
morning watch from 0600 to 0900. When I started my evening watch,
the night was pitch black--no moon, but stars coming out. Suddenly,
I saw from the helm station, where I stood watch, green streaks rushing
across the seas and coming close to our boat. I could also hear snorting
noises. I realized that we were surrounded by a pod of dolphins that
created green phosphorescence light as they moved through the water.
For quite a while they stayed with the boat and surged back and forth,
jumping out of the water, suddenly accelerating and coming very close
to my seat. It was very nice to have this display of life in the nature
around me, because I had been feeling quite solitary during my watch.
Later on, around 2300, as I sat in the salon facing towards the stern
of the boat, I saw a huge golden moon rise slowly above the horizon;
it was close to full and it started to illuminate the sea. Close to
us was a fellow boat, Emerald Star, visible until now only with
her navigation lights. Now, in the moonlight, I could make out the shape
of the boat, recognizing its hull and mast, as she glided close to us
through the water. The moon painted the surface of the sea silvery with
ever-changing patterns, which I never tired to watch from my seat at
the helm station.
As the moon passed overhead through its circle, the sun started to
rise around 0730 and, until the sun outshone the moon, I had the full
moon and the rising sun around me. Such are the moments of bliss, which
make you forget the discomfort of stormy seas.
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