Gedicht

Karel is deze zomer met Symfoni meegevaren van New England naar Maine en terug. De eigenaar van Symfoni, Fred Holth, stuurde als dank een mooi gedicht, "for your future sailings and good luck".
 Het gedicht is geschreven door een vader, die zijn kinderen ziet vertrekken voor een wereldreis per zeilboot.

If I could talk to the sea I would say to the sea, I would say:
These are my beloved children. You have met them before.
You have tested their courage with your fierce and awesome rage.
They are about to embark on a journey. A lifetime dream.
A product of many years of dedicated labor.
Take them in your mighty arms and carry them
swiftly and safely on their way.

If I could talk to the wind I would say to the wind, I would say:
These are my dear friends. You, like the sea, have met them before.
You have measured them with your many moods –
from calm to zephyr to hurricane.
Mind their course and fill their sails
and follow them wherever they go.

If I could talk to the people that they meet along the way I would say to them, I would say: these are gentle people, kind and brave.
Welcome them and make them feel at home.


Fred Holth is 2 dagen later plotseling overleden.