It was a chilly morning the first day we anchored in a bay, requiring a tender to transport us to shore. We knew it wouldn’t be chilly for long, but not many people wanted to sit on the top deck, including me. Well, I sort of did, because I wanted the perspective of the shoreline and smaller vessels, but the desire to be warm once I reached land and started to explore won. I sat below in the main area with nearly everyone else. The seats above were only full because the last few passengers were scheduled for the specific tender and didn’t want to risk not getting on a later one.
It warmed up through the day, and by the time we returned to the ship, I wanted to sit atop. Now that it was a beautiful afternoon, I wasn’t sure if there would be space. However, the kind people already settled in shifted so we could join them. And it was gorgeous—both weather and view. Most everyone in the small group of ten or so seemed to feel a sort of kinship and began sharing their day’s experiences, hometowns, reasons for travelling, etc. I listened while I focused my camera on a variety of sailing vessels and shoreline sites along the way. As we navigating toward the open water, I focused on our ship. I tried to get an unobstructed view by standing up for a moment despite the constant swaying caused by the wake of a larger boat. But I got it. As I sat back down, one of the people who had been talking near me quietly said, “If you are trying to get a photo of our ship, that wasn’t it.”
About that time, our ship came into view. It had been obscured by the boat I thought was our ship. I hadn’t noticed the logo and the flag were not the same. I laughed aloud. I snapped a great picture alright, but not of what I was trying to capture!
Later that night, as I reviewed the photos I had taken through the day, I laughed again as I deleted the fantastic photo of the wrong ship. And I thought about how the wrong focus will play tricks on us every time, causing us to think we’re seeing something we’re not, that we understand what we don’t. Until someone sets us straight, we will stand firmly on the wrong. I’m glad I have people in my life who correct me—whether it’s a stranger on a tender or friends and family who have known me for years.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download