Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 12:19:25 +1200 From: Arthur Subject: the vision part 10 adult/youth THE VISION Part Ten By Arthur Authors Note: Firstly to all the readers that have sent so many encouraging emails about this story I wish to say thank you all for it is people like you that make all the effort worth while. I have recieved nothing but good reviews and advice from you all and frankly i am now writing most of this on a good buzz. To those who have asked me, yes i do have other stories here and they also are ongoing at the moment, if you wish to take the opotunity to read them then they are on this link (adult/ youth) and titled, "SIONI" and "JOMEL". I do hope that you will all continue to enjoy them all, again thanks guys, luv ya all. As we arrived at the marina that morning I looked out toward the harbour as the first rays of the rising sun sparkled on the water and a flash of another earlier sun rise flew across my mind on the day I was found wanting and then saved by the angel beside me. I shrugged off the feeling that had come over me and took Benny into the cabin then the engine room to do the pre start up tests, showing him how to check the engines and pumps. When all was ready we went up to the flying bridge ready for the engine start and warm up, "Ok captain, start her up" "Come on John you know I dont know how to." (giggle) "Ok captain, so how do you start a car?" (lifting one eyebrow) "With a key." (giggle) "So?" ( lifting other eyebrow) "Uhm..Uhm..Hey there's no key?" (enlightenment) "Oh you mean one of these?" ( finding keys in pocket, surprised look) "Im the captain, gimme the keys cabin boy." (giggle and stern look) "Yes captain" (guilty look shuffle toes in carpet) I sat back in the chair and watched as Benny looked over the dash board to find the ignition switches and then he looked back at me when he saw there was two of them. "Hey, cabin boy?" (giggle) "Yes captain" ( half ass salute) "which one do I use?" "Both of them, two engines, two keys, two ignitions" (lift eyes to the heavens and sigh) "Dont get snooty or you'll be the new anchor boy soon." (giggle, another stern look) "Yes sir" ( to hell with the salute) "Ok Benny, you have to start them one at a time, so put both keys in and turn the right hand one just a bit till it stops, that will do the pre heat for the deisel, give it about twenty seconds then turn it all the way till the engine starts, as soon as it's runing then do the left one the same, ok?" I watched carefully as he followed my instructions to the letter and then the first engine roared into life and a look of sheer glee came over Benny's face. "I did it,John,I did it." "Hey, great little man, we'll make a boatman out of you in no time, now the other one just the same." Soon both engines were purring under the deck so while waiting for them to warm up to running temprature I showed him how to switch on my toys and set them for the area. "Ok Benny now we go down below while they warm up and I'll show you where all the safety gear is and how to use it, but the main one is that I want you to always wear a life jacket unless you are inside or up on the bridge with me ok?" I reached into a locker by the hatch and took out a jacket that would fit him, placed it around his shoulders zipping it up and adjusting the straps until it fitted him snuggley then explained how to use the safety features on the jacket and what to do in the case of an emergency. "Want me to cast off captain?" I looked over to the dock and saw Brian standing there with a huge grin on his face, I looked down at Benny lifting an eyebrow again. "Well, he's talking to you captain?" Reaching up to my ear Benny whispered. "What's a cast off John?" "He want's to know if you want the ropes off the pointy bit in the front and the one from the flat bit at the back." "Just say yes please Mr. stevedore." "he he he, Yes please Mr. stevedore." By this time we were both up on the bridge laughing at Brians antics with the lines on the dock as he pretended to make a complete mess of it for Benny's benefit as he kicked the bow out from the dock and made it look as though he was going to fall in. I put the boat into gear and we headed out into the channel at the legal 5 knot speed limit, Benny's eyes were everywhere trying to see everything at the same time. "John why is this one not going?" He pointed to the deapth sounder. "Oh we wont need that one till we find a place to fish or where I think the water might be to shallow for the boat" As we moved down the channel I began to explain the marker bouys and what the two different colors meant, where to steer and how to give way to other boats all the usual stuff to me but all new to Benny, god it was so great to have someone to pass the knowledge onto, just as I had always wanted to do. "Ok captain soon as we get out past the point there you have to call into the coast guard and let them know all about us." "How do I do that John?" "It's ok buster, I'll take you through it when we get out there." When we came to the end of the channel I turned the boat to starboard (Thats right for you land lubbers) the first real tang of salt air hit our nostrils and the bow (pointy bit at the front) began to lift slightly in the small swell from the outgoing tide running from the channel enterance. "Ok Benny, if you pull out that small drawer there you will see a plastic cover over some maps, there is also a felt pen, got that?" "Yes I've got that." "Good son,now write down what I tell you then I'll show you how to operate the radio." "Good, thats right now write this down," "Auckland coast guard, repeat three times,then, this is motor launch 'Riser' ZMR 2121 over" "when they answer the same you then say,departing viaduct mariner, 2 POB for GREAT BARRIER, ETA Monday 1500HRS, over" "when they tell that back to you then you say, roger out." "Good son that looks right, now you get the hand peice of that radio close to you, hold the button down and just repeat what you have written down ther." I watched as he followed all the instructions to the letter again as he reported our particulars to the coast guard without one mistake,I dont think I have ever been as proud of anyomne as I was at that momnent, anyone else hearing him would have thought he had been doing it all his life. "Hey captain,thats the best report I've heard on the radio you did really good" I reached over and put my arm around his shoulder and he moved in closer to me with the look of a peacock on his face as I pushed the throttles until the rev counter was reading 2300 and the speed log was at 18 knots as we cleared the last limit markers. I looked down at him as the breeze came over the dodger ruffling his beautiful brown hair and the unadulterated look of glee and pride on his face as he began to get the feel of the movement of the boat slightly flexing his knees for balance. "John this is awesome, how far are we going?" As we came around Rangitoto Island (an extinct volcanic Island, at least we all hope it is) I pointed out a large Island on the horizon. "That's where we're headed, that's The Barrier" "Way out there, thats a long way?" "No it's not that far but I'm going to take it easy so you can see everything so it'll be about two hours." We cleared the Islands and headed out into the Hauraki Gulf toward the Barrier, the sun glinting on the water, that clean fresh smell of unpoluted salt air in our nostrils,gulls and terns swooping and diving over the surface of the water, this is what life is for, out here where everything feels alive and new. "John,John,look, look, dolphins" There on the bow wave was a pod of dolphins prancing and playing around the boat as we sped along. "You want to see them closer,son?" "Oh yes yes please." "Ok then,when you go down the ladder you will see the safety line along the side, you hook yourself onto that with this lead and you can go right up to the bow and lay down on the deck and look over the front but keep one hand on the rail at all times ok?" With a yes, yes ,yessssss and he was gone and down the ladder like a monkey while I made sure to keep an eye on his safety line attaching and his footwork on the deck.Benny's confidence was almost awe inspiring as he leapt and ran to the bow then laid down on the deck watching the dolphins no more than six feet from his position. Watching him down ther yelling and shouting with so much glee and freedom made me realise what I had been missing all my life, this is what I should have had a long time ago, there is nothing in this world like a boy on a boat with the wind in your hair and shouts of pure joy on an ocean of blue. Twenty minutes after the dolphins had left us and Benny had come back onto the bridge eyes glowing, cheeks ruddy from the wind and the excitement, I said to him. "Son come over here on the other side of me, ok good, now look out over there to the right." As Benny looked where I indicated a pod of five adult killer whales and two calves breached heading in the same direction as us. "k..k..k..killer whales, oh John they're awesome, look,look they're so close." The look of awe on his face said it all, I think all of the boaties that use the water for recreation are like other people and become jaded to their surroundings with over familiarity until a kid comes along and makes us see it all again for the first time. The whales breached again three times before disappearing and it was then I saw something that was going to make his day just up ahead of us,I pulled the throttles back and slowed the boat to 5 knots so we were just idling along. "Look Son,just up front there." "Where, where." "See the three birds sitting on the water?" "Yes, yes I see them." "Wait till we get a little closer then look again" "Oooohhh John they're not birds, they're penguins." I eased the throttles until we were out of gear and drifting closer and closer to the penguins and as the boat drifted past them no more than ten feet away Beny continued to ooh and aah. "They're so small,I thought they were a lot bigger." "No those are the Little Blue Penguins, you'll see a lot of them around these waters." At last as the boat drifted further from them I put the boat into gear and we continued on our way. "Oh John if nothing else happens today this is the most fantastical day I've ever had." "Really, well if you feel so good then you better take the wheel while I have a rest." "Can I really steer?" "Yep, it's dead easy, just like driving your car." "John I'm not old enough to drive a car" "Oh well you steer this and then you'll be able to drive a car like driving a boat." I rose out of the chair without another word and let go of the wheel and made my way back to the rear seats behind the steering station smiling at the picture of happy boy making a dive for the wheel as the boat began to veer off course at 18 knots. "John John what do I do?" "Get the pointy bit at the front lined up with the Island and keep her straight, easy as falling off your bike." I watched the wake behind us as the boat zigged and zagged a bit then started to settle down into an almost straight line as he got used to the wheel and began to line up our coarse. "Hey you're doing great son, just relax your hands on the wheel and feel the way it moves, don't try to force it, just nice and relaxed." "Yeah captain now you got it, call me when you get tired." "Oh awesome, god this is so awesome." Who was the idiot that said kids today don't know how to have fun. Later we anchored in south west bay for lunch then out to do some fishing for dinner, the joy of watching 'my boy' all day doing all the things he had never dreamed of just a week ago made my heart sing like a ten year old. After catching a few nice snapper for dinner I moved the boat through the Colville Channel to the eastern side of the barrier for our cook up and later to do our night fishing on one of the many kelp beds and reefs that abound there. By eleven o'clock that night Benny was tired out and he had caught his first snapper in double figure weight it was time to anchor up for the night in one of the many bays to let him get a good nights sleep as I planned to take him out to Cuvier Island to find a good Hapuka for him to fight with, the forecast for tomorrow was perfect for a drift across the foul out there. Once the boat was secure for the night I headed down into the cabin to see a small lump in the middle of the double bunk and heard the light snoring of a very contented boy curled up in a ball, I think he was asleep before his head touched the pillow.I smiled down at this perfect vision, undressed and climbed in beside him and as I settled in he moved over to snuggle into me with a murmered "Night dad" and he was gone to the dream land of happy boys. Monday dawned as impressively as sunday had been and after breakfast was over and I sat in one of the game chairs in the stern Benny scrambled up top to start the engines warming and getting the boat ready for our next stage. I had decided to make this his day and remained where I was seated as the engines came up to temperature and glancing up to the fly bridge said to 'my boy'. "Ok son take her out, no need to hurry, take your time and check everything as you go." "You not coming up here to watch me John." "Nope, I feel lazy, besides I got a good captain he can do it." "Really, just me up here?" "Yep just you captain." Of course I kept a vey sly eye on him but let him just do what he thought was right and in no time the anchor was up and we were moving astern slowly to get enough room to turn the bow out toward Cuvier. Benny was a natural, checking his speed and distance, watching his instraments and then making his turn smooth and clean. "I did it,John, I did it." "Told you I had the best captain around." "John what was the engine revs again?" "2300 son." "Ok, got that." "Right head to the briney matey." "Aye aye cabin boy." (raucous laughter) Finally the worst part of the day arrived, heading home from a perfect outing with the perfect boy.We stood on the bridge side by side as we set our course for home, an arm around each other, both of us I'm sure feeling that this was only the first of many trips to come. "Benny, I think it's time to tell you that I'm going to make a phone call tomorrow and tell your school that you can't make it back till next week as your care guvers are away and you're staying in the city till they get back, is that ok with you?" "Would you, can I, oh John that would be neat if I could stay a couple of days more." "Ok then, thats fixed, I don't think they will say to much as it's a short week anyway." "Thank you John,thank you, it's all like a dream, really it is." That night after returning to 'our'new home with the boat cleaned and tied up to 'our' warf we sat half dozing in front of the TV when Benny leant over and kissed me on the cheek. "thank you John, it was an awesome time, I wished you were my dad for real." "No, thank you Benny, you've made me feel twenty one again and I never thought that could ever happen again, you're a very special young man." "John?" "Yes?" "If the boat is here, how are you going to get the car from the marina?" "The car's already here Benny." "How?" "Brians wife brought it back here yesterday, it's in the garage." "Oh, ok , I thought you had forgotten it." "Not a chance buster, it would be like forgetting you and i would never do that." "Mmmmm" "Ok time for bed, I think we have had our lot for the day, don't you?" "Yeah, I think so." "Ok then lets go." Lifting an eyebrow at me he asked. "Same room ok?" "Well if you're sure you're happy with that." "Yay!!!, last one in sleeps on the floor." With me sitting and him standing who do you think was last????? To Be Continued: