I Met My Sailing Heroes and Am Finally Learning the Spiritual Benefits of Slowing the Heck Down

⛵︎ Logbook 6/27/25: 10 days since setting sail

Ahoy dear readers,

Cruising life has brought on a sea of challenges in the 10 days since we pointed our sailboat away from the boatyard in New Bern. For one, each time I set out sailing to a new destination, I’m a huge bundle of nerves. I get anxious about something terrible happening that I won’t yet know how to handle. But also, there are infinite tips from other sailors that contradict other people’s advice and run counter to my own best guess. Who’s right? Being new, I second-guess everything. And then, there’s the slow pace of progress—much of which is totally out of my control.

But I’ve already dedicated my life to sailing full-time as a newbie. That decision is made. I can’t change it, nor do I want to. So, I’ve needed to discover ways to deal with these inevitable challenges & frustrations. And given that the trials will only get more severe as we go offshore and sail to uncharted waters, I need to build some more lasting intellectual & spiritual frameworks, too.

I’ve been working hard at it everyday and hoping to watch my nerves, confusion, and impatience blow away with the wind in preparation for the next.

It’s been a productive week on all these fronts. I’m beginning to find my serenity in all of it — even the times where progress is slow.

This week’s Logbook is about how I’m learning to accept all the things I don’t have control over — including timelines for progress. It’s about an unexpectedly long stopover in a charming sailing town while waiting for a much-needed package, then the super-light winds we experienced as we tried to move on north to the Chesapeake. It also contains new pictures, plus a poll with 3 options on what that much-needed package might be! And it’s about finding serendipity, magic, and connection to the spirit of the universe in all of it.

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Thanks for reading Radical Paths! I recently launched the Logbook as a weekly invitation to all subscribers to follow the latest happenings on our wild odyssey at sea. Once I get more acclimated, I’ll continue publishing other types of articles in addition to the Logbook. I’ll share inspiring stories about real-life adventurers, ways to achieve dreams big & small, reflections on living a life with different goals than the majority, and more.

As always:

• Paying subscribers: You’ll get ALL my regular articles, the endless archive, and a new Logbook each week.

• Free subscribers: You’ll get SOME regular articles and a new Logbook every other week.

This week’s Logbook will only be available in its entirety to paying subscribers. However, you can check out last week’s Logbook here for free. If you can’t swing a subscription, and you’d still like to get all the details about our voyage, you can DM me and I’ll make you an honorary paying subscriber. But if you’re able and willing, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your subscription will help my floating family reach our dreams, sustain our adventure, and keep sharing with you all for years to come.

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NOW:

Here is this week’s Logbook:

1. Three enchanting days anchored in Oriental: This tiny North Carolina town is a cruiser’s paradise, and I met the coolest sailors who taught me some profound lessons.

2. Tapping into some higher power to help me stand on those shaky sea legs: Nerves, schmerves. This is how I find the courage to keep going.