My first major encounter with sailing was at Leadership Academy, which was a JROTC boot camp I attended in Newport, Rhode Island. One of the skills we were taught was sailing a tiny little sailboat operated by 4 people. The exact roles escape me now, but the sense of camaraderie and teamwork it took to successfully operate that sailboat have stayed with me over a decade later. We learned the techniques used to catch the breeze and got quite good! Many years later, I visited a friend and we got to enjoy sailing the Irish coast on his family’s yacht. Most recently, Panda and I soaked in the Hawaiian sun on a lovely excursion sailing with dolphins. Each of these times, I loved the sense of freedom you got from being out in the ocean and being so close to it. When you’re on a ship, the water is a distant thing; when you’re on a sailboat, you can just lean over the side to enjoy. I love connecting with the water that way. It’s such a great feeling!