Cinda

by Lucinda Hathaway

A page from Lucinda Hathaway's journal:

Friday, June 28, 1996, 0400

Steaming mug of tea in hand, I lean against the pinrail on the foremast of the "HMS" Rose as she sails west on the English Channel through the Aldernay Race past the Needles headed to Southampton, final destination for this week's cruise. Five days ago I stowed my gear in a little cubby hole and nested my sleeping bag in the center of four three tiered bunks in A cabin located in the bow of this vessel. Six of the twelve bunks were occupied by sailors from the UK, all members of a British sail training organization, all collecting experiences aboard different "tall ships". I am the only rank beginner having sailed nothing larger than a 34 foot sloop and never on a ship with three masts and square sails.

Why did I sign on? I simply wanted to see how a square rigger was sailed... being a visual person I have to see things happen... however, it takes longer than five days to figure out how to sail a frigate and the first thing you learn is that it is not a single-handed skill.....cooperation is the key. There were twenty or more regular crew members aboard, plus the captain and three mates and fourteen trainees. It takes all hands to tack the ship including the trainees helping or getting in the way. In my five days aboard I did not figure out the purpose of all of the lines but I did learn how to make a proper coil and I did feel the thrill of seventeen sails "full and by".

Each of the trainees is assigned to a regular crew member. My crew member is Sarah. She sits quietly with me at the bow for our 0400 bow watch with her own cup of tea and her own thoughts. We look at the churning waves in the currents of the channel... I can sense her peace and only hope that she senses mine. Sarah is a special young woman. At the moment she is seventeen but will be eighteen tomorrow. This will be the third birthday that she has spent aboard the Rose. She is an apprentice at the Apprentice Shop of Rockland, Maine, and she built the lapstrake cutter, Thorne, which serves as the auxiliary for the Rose. It is a beautiful boat and Sarah is very proud of it. Looking at its shiny brightwork and feeling its smooth surface you know that Sarah must be determined, focused, patient and appreciative of natural beauty. She has also proved to me that she has the makings of a teacher. Sarah is a good instructor for me, always welcoming and answering my questions and always calm!

Sarah and I are but part of this "motley crew" which will change and reform each week of the summer. The common denominator of the group is an undercurrent of understanding and a desire to keep this wonderful world of sail available and ongoing. The permanent crew have mastered the art as have some of the trainees. The rest of us have merely witnessed and fleshed out the bare bones of our knowledge. We will do our part by telling or writing about our experience. My time aboard the Rose ends this afternoon in Southampton, homeport of the QE II. Three years ago I sailed on "the Queen" from this very port. That cruise included champagne, crystal, music, fancy cuisine, high heels and panty hose, bath tubs and showers, force 11 gale winds, sixty foot seas and a vibrating engine. This cruise includes wearing deck shoes and jeans, one-dish meals and dish water, wind in the sails and water sloshing in the bilges... I prefer the quiet of the Rose under sail.

Would I sail again on the Rose? I would. What would I change? As a trainee, I need more structure and... as a housewife, I'm going to send Chris a dozen new dish towels with my thanks for his cooking.

Farewell, HMS Rose.