I’ve always loved the sea, but my perspective has traditionally been from the shore. I’m not complaining…it does my soul wonders to stand with my bare feet in the sand, lift my face to the salty breeze, and slow my breathing to match the rhythm of the waves rolling ashore. When the weight of the world is on my shoulders, a few days by the sea help me feel less overwhelmed–I guess standing before the vast size and power of the ocean reminds me that whatever I’m dealing with is fairly minor in the whole scheme of things.

So it was truly magical for this sandy-toed girl to find herself smack in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean for seven days, gaining a totally new perspective on the sea. For five days, there was no land to be seen, and if it hadn’t been for a passing freighter and a rogue airplane, it would have been easy to imagine that those of us on board the Queen Mary 2 were the only people left in the world. Being a tiny speck on that tiny ship in the middle of that huge ocean was a new lesson in inconsequentiality.