Thriving In TURBULENT TIMES – Ep 58

Plan A

00:00 Stephen

Well, we’ve been here a couple of days now, settling into our new home for the winter. Which is…

00:06 Kerry

Monastir Tunisia!

00:09 Stephen

That’s right, so there’s the marina behind us, our boat is there somewhere

01:00 Kerry

So we make our plans, but God orders our steps. We were on plan A. We had just sailed from Malta to Tunisia, where we had a six month winter berth there, where we could stay and enjoy everything that Tunisia has to offer, which is a beautiful country, beautiful people.

Then, war broke out.

Plan B

01:38 Stephen

So, on to plan B. Had to get the boat out of storage, put the sails up, get the engine running again, get everything ready to go. And then we headed out, back to Malta.

01:50 Kerry

It took us 26 hours overnight, it was a great sail, bit tired after doing the return trip from Australia, unpacking the boat, and then the trip to Malta again.

Plan C

02:00 Stephen

Which is really interesting because we had planned Have a nice six months break, just resting, relaxing and gathering ourselves together. Instead, now we’re looking at, accelerating our plans and heading across the Atlantic in a few months. So, from day to day, who knows what’s going to happen.

02:17 Kerry

Preparation, preparation. Preparation is what we’re now doing, ready to cross the Atlantic, hopefully in January.

02:23 Stephen

And then after all the preparation, we’ll probably end up doing something else. Flexibility is key.

02:27 Kerry

So plan A to plan B to possibly plan Z.

03:06 Stephen

We’re hoping to bring a camel into Australia for our grandson, David. I don’t know that we can fit him on the plane. Maybe this little guy.

03:29 Stephen

We’re just sitting here, we’ve just had dinner. Just looking out at the beautiful town of Millieha. Got the full moon illuminating the water. We’ve got the fortress in the background. And we’re just basically waiting. In a couple of days we’re going to get our rigging checked and adjusted which will help the boat to sail better.

And I’m just looking at, some of the weather systems that are coming around. So there’s this massive system in the North Atlantic and it’s going to funnel much wind up through Mediterranean and we’re wanting to go that way. So that’s why we’re waiting. We’re just going to wait until it reverses and goes the other way.

We bumped into a local this morning. Who’s been, I think he said he was 81, he’s been sailing for 50 years. He said after the 10th of November, it should settle down. So we’re looking forward to that. But this is just incredible. We’re so blessed.

04:33 Kerry

So, we’ve got some decisions to make.

04:35 Stephen

We’ve been sitting here at anchor in Malta for a while now and watching all the cyclonic weather systems coming through one after another. And we’ve just been waiting for a window where we can make our way from here across the Mediterranean to Spain. But it’s looking increasingly likely that that won’t happen. So we need to have options. In addition to the weather, as it’s getting colder and the days are getting shorter, the solar panels are having difficulty keeping up with our electricity demands, so it’s all becoming a bit challenging.

None of it’s impossible, but definitely challenges.

05:14 Kerry

It means we have to decide between cooking or having a hot shower and you know I’ve just got my hot shower back and so that’s a really tricky one to decide on. Stephen has just transformed my life yet again. We now have a working shower with hot water.

It means that any time I want. I can have a shower. I don’t have to go to an amenity block. I don’t have to shower off the back of the boat. I can shower on the boat with warm water. Have a look. First of all, this is the little area. I’ve got my little shower curtain. And then, if you look inside, I’ve got my shampoos, conditioners, all up on the wall.

And on this side, here’s my shower head. My taps, I’m clean, and a happy wife, happy life.

Plan D

06:06 Stephen

We know we did the right thing, but trying to navigate to safe, find safe marinas or safe harbours as we come into winter is actually proving quite So we were getting quite concerned about the prospect of travelling West across the Mediterranean at this time of year November, December.

All the winds were blowing this way and blowing very strong. Marinas along the path were full so that we would have nowhere, no safe havens along the way. So we made a decision that we were going to put the boat into a marina here in Malta, perhaps until the end of February, and that’s what we’re doing.

Been able to do this afternoon. So the sense of relief is incredible.

06:50 Kerry

It’s palpable.

06:50 Stephen

So we are aware that, there are no marinas in Malta that, are [00:07:00] protected from the northeast swell, which means it can get quite rough even in the marina, but at least we have the option to go ashore and leave the boat, to do whatever it’s gonna do.

So overall, we’re safe for another few months and, we can. Start thinking about planning and preparing for our trip through the rest of the Mediterranean and across the Atlantic in 2024.

07:24 Kerry

You don’t realize how stressful this sailing life can be, sometimes.

07:50 Stephen

Or how exciting it can be.

07:51 Kerry

It really is just, just the both extremes. We’re either absolutely loving it and just thriving, or we’re terrified. Terrified. Fear of dying. We live another day. Yay!

Rinella Bay, Malta. It’s been such a safe little haven. You can see in the background there that’s Valletta. We’re directly opposite it going into Grand Harbour. It’s not the prettiest on that side but it’s safe and there’s hardly any boats other than us here. Boats come and go but mainly go.

It’s really been a safe haven when the weather’s been like this. A very quick trip to shore. Somewhere safe to tie up when we catch the bus into town.

08:57 Stephen

We’ve just picked up anchor and we’re heading around the corner from Ronella Bay and we’re heading to Manuel Islands Arena. It’s an island within an island here on Malta, which is where we’re going to spend the winter with relative safety from some of the strong winds and seas.

09:13 Kerry

Here’s Valletta in Malta. Oh, you can even see a little bus up there going along.

Gorgeous day here in Malta.

You can see the masts in the distance, that’s where we’re going. There’s the entry to the harbour. Manoel Island Marina,

09:43 Stephen

Manoel Island Marina, this is sailing vessel Thankfulness, Thankfulness, over.

09:51 Kerry

Stephen just casually says to me, can you take the wheels so I can contact them downstairs on the radio?

I hope they answer quickly and he comes back up. I mean, I’ve got this, but it still makes me nervous.

I can helm when we’re out on the oceans, but in here, no. Here’s the I See Malta ferry taking over us.

Yep, our boat’s tiny compared to a lot of these.

This is when I start getting really nervous, but Stephen’s as cool as a cucumber. We’re going to turn around and back in.

Our boat doesn’t have a bow thruster. And really, the steerer, she’s a bit like a brick. So you’ve got to get used to steering a brick. I’ve got my joggers on. So I can be everywhere I need to be. I’ve got my fenders, so I can… Use those to prevent us hitting any other boats if we need to, I haven’t needed to, but it’s good to be ready.

11:29 Stephen

Manoel Island Yacht Marina. That way. That’s our winter home. Feeling pretty good about that.

11:35 Kerry

Really good about it. Feeling right at home. We’ve got a gum tree at the entry of the marina – in Malta. Come, we’ll show you where we’re going.

11:45 Stephen

Got all the little boats. In close to the town. All the big expensive motorboats over there against the town wall. And we’ve been squeezed in just up here.

12:10 Stephen

From plan A, to plan B, to C, to D, all the way up to Z. Wow. I think it can be really stressful when plans change and things don’t go as envisaged. It’s really important to be flexible, but the way that we’re flexible is by putting our trust and our hope in our God. And, without that, I don’t think we could really, cope with the constant change and not knowing what’s coming next, and making a plan this way and it ends up going the other way.

It would just be too hard.

12:43 Kerry

It would be. And my favorite verse in the Bible is, For I know the plans I have for you to cleanse the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to keep your hope and a future. So whenever those plans are changing, we know that He does ultimately have a plan and the plan [00:13:00] is for our good.

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