TERROR IS NEVER SACRED

by Ray Jason

A  handsome catamaran recently docked near my lovely sailboat.  The captain is Russian and his wife is Turkish.  They have two children, and although they are too young for passports, I suspect that they are from the Kingdom of Joy.  That’s because all day long they spread their laughter and happiness throughout the marina.  Whether it is riding their tiny bicycles or fishing with their parents or trying to learn how to swim, their vibrant innocence delights and comforts me.

It has also inspired me.  The essay that I had been working on seemed lost in a mental labyrinth.  It deals with the immense subject of religion, and it had become too big and too confused.  But then a wave and a smile from the two kids suddenly made me realize that I should narrow my focus, and concentrate on religion and children.

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A TWILIGHT FRIENDSHIP

by Ray Jason

It is pleasant having company.  A friend’s boat is anchored about thirty yards from AVENTURA in a peaceful little cove.  He is another solo sailor, which makes us kindred spirits and members of a very small fellowship.  I am watching him row through the amber-tinted twilight, dragging a fishing line behind his dinghy.  His sunset ritual is both functional and philosophical.  He is attempting to catch his dinner, while also immersing himself in the thinker’s milieu of Nature, silence and solitude.

            This evening there is no fish for him, but he is still smiling as he rows over.  He smoothly climbs aboard my sloop, as I tie his dinghy line to a cleat.

“Sorry Ray, no luck tonight,” he apologizes.

“Lawrence, our friendship has never relied on you providing a fish.”  Let me go below and fix us a couple of drinks worthy of this splendid sunset.”