Smooth Sailing

June 4, 1977

June 4, 1977

"Phil, wake up," Edward whispered to his son, but he was still fast asleep. Edward wasn't sure how he could sleep through Holly running around the house at six in the morning, but now, Edward needed Phil to wake up. He had something special planned for today, and he didn't want Phil to miss it.

After a few more minutes, Phil finally rolled out of bed. "What are we doing today, Dad?" he asked.

"You'll see," Edward said. "Let's go have breakfast first."

Phil and Edward both went into the kitchen, where Lorraine was making eggs for the whole family. As Lorraine served both of them, Holly ran into the kitchen and clung onto Edward's arm. "Dad!" Holly exclaimed. "Can we go swimming today?"

"I have a better idea," Edward said.

"What's your better idea, Dad?" Phil asked.

"Nothing's better than swimming," Holly argued.

Edward couldn't hold in his excitement any longer. "I'm going to teach you how to sail," he said.

The kids weren't nearly as excited as Edward was. "I'd rather go swimming," Holly said while Phil absentmindedly played with his food.

"Trust me," Edward said. "You'll love sailing."

After breakfast, Edward took Phil and Holly out to the lake. Lorraine went with them, but she couldn't stay for long. "I have to judge the race today," she told the rest of her family. "I'll see you all in a few hours."

"Bye Mom!" Phil and Holly exclaimed.

"See you soon, Lorraine," Edward said. He wished that he could compete in the race or judge with his wife, but he knew that he wouldn't find a better day to teach the kids anytime soon. The weather was perfect - the wind was just strong enough that Phil and Holly would have no problem getting going, but it wasn't too strong for them to sail by themselves.

After Lorraine took off in the judges' boat, Edward got into his sailboat and told the kids to join him. Phil and Holly both jumped in, and Edward introduced them to all of the parts of the boat. "You know I'm going to quiz you on all of this later, right?" Edward said after he was done.

Holly watched a butterfly float by, not paying much attention, while Phil said, "I don't think I'm going to remember this."

"It's really important that you know the parts of the boat," Edward said. "You can't learn to sail without knowing them." He gestured toward the right side of the boat and asked, "What side of the boat is this?"

"Starboard," Holly answered.

"Very good, Holly," Edward said.

"Dad, can we start sailing now?" Phil asked.

"I haven't even gone over how to tack yet," Edward said.

"We can learn that later, right?" Phil said.

Edward considered it and then said, "I suppose so. Let's start sailing." He set sail and headed toward the part of the lake where the race was. "I'll handle the sheet line. Holly, do you want to steer?"

"Yes!" Holly said. She grabbed the tiller and shook it back and forth violently.

"What are you doing?!" Edward shouted. Holly let go of the tiller and backed away. "Phil, why don't you give it a try?"

"Okay, Dad," Phil said. He took the tiller and steered right toward where the race was happening.

"Phil, are you sure you want to go that way?" Edward asked.