The name of our boat was Tenacious Grace. When I was 13, my parents who had grown up on the prairies and never sailed a boat in their lives, decided to move our family of four onto a sailboat for just over a year. We bought this gorgeous Seawind 1150 catamaran and sailed her down from Seattle WA all the way down the West Coast and into the Sea of Cortez in Mexico.

Even though we had no money left, it was a luxurious yet simple way of life. I spent hours lounging on the deck soaking up the tropical sun and sea salt air. We snorkeled on remote, colourful coral reefs and played on white sands untouched by tourists and crowds. We ate amazing street food and barbecued large fish we caught not fifteen minutes prior. It was an amazing way of life, one that I dearly miss. Sleep when you’re tired, eat when hungry, no schedules no appointments. You just go with the flow, follow the wind and the sun.  You meet someone and ask if they want to go to lunch and you go, no calendars, no schedules, no worries.

One of the most amazing things about the journey was that in all other aspects, my parents were your perfectly normal, average middle-class folk. You don’t need money or to wait for ‘the right time’ to pursue your dreams, you just need to sink your teeth into a dream and chase it tenaciously. I didn’t think I, your average middle-class Canadian woman, would ever get into The Chateau but it was a dream I pursued and leapt for, claws outstretched. I want to end on that note. Whatever your dreams are, pursue them for all you’re worth, no matter what, because you might end up in the middle of the greatest adventure of your life.

– KatrynAnaka