David’s Aunt Caroline introduced him to sailing when he was very young. That’s when his dream of crossing an ocean began.

Years after completing our two transatlantic crossings, David and I visited Aunt Caroline in Portland, Oregon.

During our visit, I mentioned to her that I was writing a memoir about our year on the high seas. She listened intently as I read through the prologue and chapter one, in which she was mentioned.

With tears in her eyes, she then said, “I want you to hear to something.” She retrieved her phone, accessed her voice mail, and to our amazement, replayed the voice mail message David had left her from an outdoor phone booth in the Azores after our first ocean passage of 23 days. She had saved this message on her phone for eight whole years! Listening to it, of course, I cried too!

Here it is, heartfelt and real, and part of the story of my memoir, Ready to Come About (Dundurn Press 2019)

Hope you enjoy it.