Hold Everything!

Ok, so it's been more than a week. But what do you do when you've just admitted wanting to bring someone like Stella aboard (who promised to behave), and you're trying to decide if you can really do this thing. More importantly… could the Captain endure it?

My idea was to give out evidence. A bit of background about Stella with no bias involved. But, of course there's going to be bias--I love Stella and crew, for heaven sake. Then there is this thing about wanting to write stories, and more stories, and--who cares whether we go adventuring to Alaska, or Australia, or even to the moon. I just want to write stories.

I did make one minor concession (can't think when) about taking summers off between books for adventuring (and gold digging). On the other hand, there have been so many interruptions during the usual winter work schedule this year, I don't really care about that anymore. I just want to write my stories. 

All of which led up to this bid to bring Stella Madison (and friends) aboard. So, the Captain is thinking about it. Meanwhile, Stella--herself-- thinks we should make a "dry run" along the route to Alaska, to see if things really could work out for everyone. After all, the Captain has the entire boat cluttered with engine parts at the moment, and I find it a bit difficult to work in all that banging and clanging a few feet away. Then there is my dear friend from Australia, who says she might be able to come along--something that could lead to a few adventures all by themselves.

Oh, good grief! Is it possible? Is it reasonable? And -- most important-- are there any divine footsteps to follow in such a wild idea? What exactly would we---how could we even--

Which is exactly what I'm talking about, dear readers, when I say--like Meg Jennings, in my novel GOLD TRAP--that turning dreams into reality is risky business. Yes, Indeed. So. I am going to present this new idea to the Captain, to see what he thinks about it. And in the meantime, if you would like to know more about Stella, you can find out about her over on my website, where she has actually talked me into giving her an entire page to herself.

Back later, to let you know what the Captain decides. And--don't worry, we're still going to vote, as he promised to take my "public opinion" into consideration. So, reason should still prevail.

Safety in numbers and all that.

Goodbye Liberty...

Leaving Liberty Bay

Our 2013 Mystery Tour started quietly one morning, as we untied from the dock, pointed the GLORY B north,  and chugged out of Liberty Bay. It was a beautiful spot, and we were blessed in so many ways during our stay in that historical little waterfront town of Poulsbo. It's where we finally found the GLORY B, and decided to follow our dreams.

View from the deck of the GLORY B

No wind made for an uneventful first passage except for lovely things like the sun finally breaking through after days and days of rain, and a pod of young dolphins that popped up several times next to the boat for a quick look as they passed by. Too fast to get the camera out, so I'll have to be better prepared next time.

Getting ready to go under
Agate Pass Bridge

So far, all systems are working beautifully. We have our own hot shower, an oven to bake anything we want in, and my Internet connection works as flawlessly at anchor somewhere as it did tied up to the docks back in Poulsbo. It even works while traveling, but I've been enjoying the sights too much to get down to business, yet. Maybe tomorrow!

Tonight, we are anchored out in the bay at Port Townsend, where we will take the GLORY B, TOO (our dinghy) ashore for a few last minute items, before spending an enjoyable evening plotting our course to the next stop. Where will that be? Not quite sure, yet, because there are so many choices. But I know one thing.

We will definitely be looking for divine appointments! And while the Captain is busy plotting our course north, I will be plotting the next "Stella Madison Capers," which happen to be taking Stella and her friends up this very same route. Of course, I haven't forgotten Meg Jennings, from my novel GOLD TRAP, either. 

Did you know you can go anywhere
 in the world from here?

In fact, I've got my gold pan handy for the first pretty river I come across along the Gold Rush trail. Not to mention a lot of people with gold fever have been there before me, and, I'll be on the lookout for some of their stories and legends, too. So, I hope you'll stop by often to join us!

A Divine Appointment...

Why are we so interested in divine appointments? Of course, I can't speak for everyone, but the way I look at it, I can't think of anything more exciting than having something specially set up for you by God, Himself. It would imply that he cared for you enough to depend on you in some way. 

One thing I have learned about divine behavior over the years, is that God never has just one thing in mind. Whenever He intervenes, or sets something up, it always benefits more than just one person. It seems to me that whatever He touches has a ripple effect of good that spreads out in all directions, splashing wonderful things on anyone in the way. Many of whom had some sort of "help" in order to get into that position in the first place. And I am constantly in awe at how the Lord orchestrates these things. Here's an example of a recent one that "bumped" into us, just a couple of weeks ago...

Every year, for the last several years, we have traveled to a cooler location during the summer. Mostly because the Captain is an outdoor man, and once the temperature gets up over a hundred degrees and stays there for weeks on end, most otherwise enjoyable outside activities turn into torture. Since this has become such a habit for us, we decided how wonderful it would be to go back to something we have enjoyed so much on various occasions: living aboard a sailboat. Some of our most memorable times have been spent on boats. 

In fact, the more we thought about it, the more it seemed to actually fit into the "big picture" of our lives. We could see how it could even expand our ministry in many delightful ways. That would be the real draw of the thing, because if something doesn't fit in with God's "master plan," we wouldn't want to do it. Not because we are so selfless (I wish we were!), but because we have found His plans to be much more exciting than ours. And it is usually "His treat" when it comes to the expenses, too.

At any rate, we decided to "test the waters" a little bit, to see if this was really a "God idea," or not. So, we put our house up for rent. The phone started ringing within five minutes after the ad went out. Lots of people were interested. Everyone who came to see it within the next two days, wanted it. But there was one young family we had an instant connection with. It seemed they had very much wanted to live in the country (ours is a small farm), but everything they had been looking at was too expensive. So, they prayed about it. Because it really didn't look like something that would be possible for them to do. Shortly after they prayed that prayer, they saw our ad. 

I could end this story right here, and it would be enough for us to agree how good God is at working things out for everybody involved. Except I would be leaving a few special things out. Such as their desire to have some dairy goats because the goat's milk their two-year-old daughter needs is expensive. I happen to love dairy goats, and while I don't have any this year because of travel plans, the barn, pens, and pastures are already set up for them. However, we have two dogs who have been in our family for years, and we didn't look forward to losing them. So, we were more than delighted when the family agreed to take care of them for us during our travels. 

Something tells me, this is going to be a very exciting and unusual summer!

"Is it possible to miss a divine appointment simply because you fail to recognize the moment?" Hmmm…Meg wondered then if a person could actually go looking for divine appointments, and, if they got good at it, might even qualify for more…"

Taken from GOLD TRAP, the book that inspired our MYSTERY TOUR.