There has been a rash of theft in our marina lately. It started with a bunch of fishing gear getting stolen off of some power boats, but this Saturday I found my bike had been stolen. This kind of thing can really make you question the quality of the average person… until you come back from your errands to find an annoymous gift in your cockpit.
We think one of our friends down the dock left the toy castle for the kids. They had a ball playing with it but agreed that it wouldn’t fit in our boat. The next morning Ruby and Miles raced down the dock to return it and were perfectly delighted to put it back aboard Gemini.
I’ve enjoyed reflecting on the local and super-local balance that all of this demonstrates:
Super-locally we have found an equilibrium on board. This equilibrium favors reading, crafts, and make believe play over toys and accumulation of stuff.
Locally we have—as a community—overcome the selfishness of the common thief with the utter selflessness of anonymous gifts, warm smiles, and friendly conversation.
