Pilar

Comings&Goings

   Nick and Katie

I want to start this entry with a quick update and a milestone of sorts.  With plenty of excitement and after days, weeks, and possibly even years of speculation and anticipation, Nick and Katie successfully became engaged during the Thanksgiving holiday.  And in this new age of proposals, the clandestine operation that included the entire Stevens and Ellis families gathered shortly after the proposal to congratulate and celebrate with Nick and Katie as they embark on their journey together.  From this observer’s perspective Katie was definitely surprised and perhaps wishing that she too had been let in on the secret in advance .  More details to follow.

   Jardines de la Reina

In hindsight, it probably made perfect sense that Hemingway’s beloved Pilar, a 38 ft cabin cruiser built at Wheeler Shipyard in Brooklyn, was very much on my mind as my five friends and I  bumped along a dirt road and entered the port town of Jucaro, following our short flight to Camequey and a 2.5 hour bus ride.  Jucaro was where we were to begin our seven hour boat journey to Jardines de la Reina, a small archipelago and home to Tarpon, Bonefish, and Permit, an exciting trifecta of game fish.  Not so coincidentally,  a friend had recommended that I read Paul Hendrickson’s book, Hemingway’s Boat, during the trip to infuse my Cuban adventure with Hemingway himself.  And he was spot on. Essentially, the book chronicles the time period of Hemingway’s turbulent life from 1934 – 1961 and posits the notion that the Pilar remained the one constant in the author’s life as he dealt with success, fame, love, and plenty of conflict prior to taking his own life in 1961.  Even when Hemingway was lion hunting in Africa, he dreamed of Havana and peaceful moments on his boat while spending days in the “stream” seeking big game fish.

Our group’s home for our own week in the waters off of Cuba would be the Halcon, a tired, fifty year old vessel, with character as my father used to say, that Castro requisitioned from a financier and thereafter shared with his close friends.  I couldn’t even begin to imagine the different people who had cruised these very same waters over so many years, but I did know that our group was excited to explore the vast fisheries that beckoned.  Even with my short Cuban exposure, I saw a place of striking contrasts in the people, the landscape, and the industry of living. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera charger so the following images are mostly from my iphone..a rookie mistake.

Our crew of four kept great care of us, and William, one of the managers of the fishing outfitters joined us for dinner on the boat several nights and provided a fascinating narrative about Cuba’s history, Batista, Castro, the black market, and the challenges facing all Cubans, and especially those with ambitions and dreams for a better life. From my perspective Cuba looked to be in a time warp, existing somewhere in the 1950’s and still facing the grim challenges of a developing country with very little in the way of infrastructure and resources. 

Out on the water, however, our group was drawn to the remarkable fishery that allowed us to stalk, sight, fly cast and hopefully catch/release beautiful game fish in the watery shallows.  Our Cuban guides were keen observers of all things fish and provided their own colorful commentary along the way.  And they were never afraid to express their displeasure and frustration when an angler failed to execute, especially when a Permit was at hand.  Speaking of that elusive species, Ted Suglar – a.k.a. “the Permit whisperer” – caught a 20 pounder on his very first cast of the trip.  Just amazing.  We had lots of exciting fish stories to share, and the fish just kept getting bigger each time we each told our tales.  And by the by, it was liberating to be free of technology and “off the grid,” so to speak, for the entire week. 

According to Amy, Nick, Abby, Will 

Not a lot of activity from the family recently, but Nick did send along an  interesting link for some pretty sophisticated human potential self-improvement articles:  Better Humans

Worth the Read, Listen, and View

  I have gone on a little tear listening to podcasts and recently enjoyed learning about El Chapo’s trial and a fascinating piece about what happens when you share your location on your iphone.  A must listen to be sure:  The Business of selling location.

  Articles of interest

Flip Pallot: A Spiritual Guide to the Last 40 Feet  (worth the read, for sure)

Is the Aeneid a Celebration of Empire – or Critique

How Loneliness is Tearing America Apart

Is Aerobic Exercise the Key to Successful Aging?

Review:  A Broadway ‘Mockingbird,’ Elegiac and Effective

A Call to Modernize American Philanthropy

I also was drawn to a wonderful series of six short documentaries, A Moment in Mexico, that were raw, provocative, and powerful in different ways. 

And Finally

While I have not had any official responsibilities with Westminster during my sabbatical, I have stayed in close touch with my advisees, a group of eight students with whom I have worked closely during their respective Westminster careers.  We gathered together for our annual holiday lunch at our house last Wednesday and, not surprisingly, they did not disappoint with their collective banter, humor, goodwill, and warmth.  It was a pleasure to spend time with all of them, and I want to give a shout out to the seniors among the group – Riley, Emmett, Annabel, Alex, Nate – who all received great early college admission’s news and will attend Richmond, Harvard, Colgate, SMU, and Middlebury. Congratulations.  It’s always nice when things work out as you had hoped and planned.

Lastly, and in the spirit of very cool fishing moments, I could not resist adding a photo of my friend Rick Witmer, who has slid easily into retirement and  found time for a variety of exciting pursuits.  Rick is a superb angler and, similar to our Cuban contingent, recently spent time fishing down south and landing this magnificent Tarpon.  I did not take the below photo, but I love the perspective, composition, colors, and – of course – Rick and his guide’s joyful smiles.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.