Changing Hands...

Putting things into God's hands is like your company being sold and a new CEO comes in. There are a lot of changes that have to be dealt with, most of which are uncomfortable. Simply because that's not how you would have chosen, if it was still up to you. Only it isn't. So, while we were waiting for the dust to settle on the rental emergency back home...

We decided to take advantage of the “layover time” and get a few things done on the boat we still wanted to do. Which is how the Captain happened to be busy scraping the barnacles off the bottom (only as far as he could reach with a brush on the end of a pole, while floating alongside in the dinghy), when he looked down into the clear water and noticed there were two blades missing off our propeller. No wonder we were making such little headway against those strong currents!

Thinking back, we knew just when it had happened. Somewhere near the end of the Georgia Strait (after two days out on that big water), we began to feel an unusual vibration that hadn't been there before. We hadn't bumped or run into anything, so we figured the bearings might be wearing out on the shaft... something else to check on when we finally got the Glory B hauled out to paint the bottom. Which we had every intention of doing. In fact, we made (and had to cancel) reservations to do that several times in different places along the way. This last time, as recently as the rental uproar.

What a wonderful boat we have to get us to a safe harbor (with the help of angels, I'm sure) on only one prop blade. But goodness, what an unexpected expense this is going to be! Not unexpected to our new CEO, however, who already knew beforehand the thing had been wearing away from years of neglect, and that this area around the town of Campbell River (just across the bay from our little cove) is the last good place for parts and hauling out for hundreds of miles. Not to mention the currents will be stronger, weaving through all the islands scattered in front of us during the next leg of our voyage.

Which is why I am seriously considering writing a boater's manual on what NOT to do, when preparing for a cruise. I figure if there had been one of those handy, we could have saved ourselves a majority of the troubles we have encountered, so far. Of course, we have read piles of the ones that tell you what should be done, and felt we had pretty much everything we needed for a day's journey. Which is all the farther we ever planned to go at one time.

So, we are back to following “God's footsteps,” instead of trudging through unfamiliar territory on our own limited intuitions. Which can be deceiving at the most inopportune times, simply because they spring out of your very own brains. Myself, I can imagine any number of ways to do something—most of which turn out to be wrong. Sad but true.

At any rate, we are now on a hunt for a propeller to fit our near fifty-year-old boat, and the means to get it put on there. But we're not too worried. The Lord has a lot of people in this town, many of whom are experts. One of the reasons I'm sure we ended up in this particular place. To fix something a lot more important than just having enough gas in our tank to move on.

Story of life, isn't it.