Race 4 - Day 27
Crew Diary - ​Trying To Live In The Moment
14 December

Holly Williams
Holly Williams
Team Unicef
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A personal mantra I have tried to repeat to myself often through the years is “Seize The Day”. In fact, it inspired me to name my boat “Seas The Day” (she sits idle in San Francisco Bay during this year-long circumnavigation). Saying it to myself over the years has helped me tackle tough cases in the operating room and head back to the hospital after minimal rest, while presenting a smile (granted, it helps that I work mostly with infants and children and love my profession – paediatric general surgery!) I’ve also found saying it helpful to recognise and appreciate moments of joy, beauty, grace, and love. I have been repeating it to myself a lot on this Leg to Fremantle.

We started out strong after a good result into Cape Town and an epic layover with time to prepare our boat and our bodies and minds for the anticipated thrilling/grueling Southern Ocean Leg. Well, meconium (G-rating on this column) happens, literally, for those who know the mechanism behind the most common general surgical condition acute appendicitis. Thanks to a quick diagnosis and rapid initiation of antibiotics including intravenous, our beloved crew mate Andy was able to be stabilised allowing time enough for us to divert to Durban so that his treatment could be continued. Absolutely the best decisions were made in this case and thanks to South African Sea Rescue and supporters, etc (see previous blogs) Our turn around including fuel was just 2 hours.

Then our “race” restarted from a much more northerly latitude, in the Indian Ocean with already 9 days on the clock. Unfavourable conditions for forward progress consequently resulted. We are now Day 28 into this Leg with over 1300 nm left to Fremantle. We were struggling until finally we gave in yesterday to the ignominious use of our diesel engine to help us through a wind hole in the ironically named Ocean Sprint section of our “race”.

Whether we will make it in time for the start Leg 4 is still in question, but if we do there is no question our performance could be affected, despite our army of on-coming leggers and our loved ones and supporters who have been working diligently to plan the logistics for us to rapidly restock food stores,etc.

Now, I’m suddenly transported out of my momentary lapse of negative reverie by Alex turning on Sinatra in the galley while preparing lunch and I look up at his ear to ear grin which is contagious. Life is too precious and short to spend time focusing on the negative or what could have been… Just find joy in every day and look forward to the next. Hey, on that thought...we surfed with a pod of Minke whales right beside the boat yesterday and last night Aser on our crew baked a lovely unexpected treat of warm cinnamon buns for night watch. Yum!!!

Seize the day, for time passes like hourglass sand.