Transformation. The Chris Craft Scorpion

1985 Chris Craft Scorpion 230

We argue if she is a 1985 or a 1987, but it really doesn’t matter, the boat has been on the farm longer than either of us, and likely has more adventurous stories to tell.  She was originally purchased by my late husband as a means to try and change the manic pace of the lifestyle he had led, and to find some sort of space to find peace and heal from the pain of his past.  He found that solace in taking her to West Hawk Lake.  He christened her Brooklyn Rose, after a Neil Diamond song that had stuck in his head.

After he passed she sat there.  I tried once to take it out on my own, that was a fiasco.  When Cecil came into my life, we took her out occasionally to have some fun with the kids, and explore some of the lakes in and around Manitoba.  But farm life was crazy busy, and the opportunities to spend much time relaxing and enjoying weekends seldom worked out.  There was always hay to put up, cows to chase, kids to support, aging parents to spend time with.  In the thirteen years we’ve been together, I don’t think we’ve put 20 hours on that boat.  What a sad statement to make in how busy life can become.

We’ve both had a dream that one day we’d buy a boat and go explore the Queen Charlotte Islands, and continue up the west coast of British Columbia, seeing what we could see.  Experiencing new places and people and maybe even getting to visit the Haida Gwaii Islands has been a wish that we’ve both held onto for a long time. 

With this year’s cancer diagnosis we were reminded that we may not have a long time to start fulfilling these kinds of dreams, and it spurred us to take action.  It hit me that I’m 54 this year, the same age that Greg was when he passed, Cecil is 57.  The time has come to start paying closer attention.  The years in between then and now had caused me to become complacent and relaxed about the endless future ahead...or maybe it was just getting caught up in the business of life and the other losses that we’ve suffered over the past several years.  Whatever the reason, the diagnosis was what we needed to take action.  Remember, everything happens for us, not to us.

We decided that the boat was just what we needed to take the trip that we plan on next spring, mechanically she’s in great shape, but she’s kinds tired and old, much like ourselves.  As we looked at what it would take to spruce her up, we remembered our son’s friend Paul Aquin of WrapidDesigns in Elie, Manitoba had once said he’d love to tackle the boat as a project.  That was step one of her transformation.
 

We had to find colours and a name that was more aligned with who we are now as a couple.  We knew it needed to be shades of blue and spirited. Something that felt alive!  Paul managed to piece together our ideas and thoughts, and the design for ‘Celyn Away’, her new name, was born.

As with so many other things in life, once you get started, it’s hard to stop.  We realized that now that the outside looked so smart and spruced up, the inside looked both tired and unmatched, so Paul connected us with Darryl Enns from Elm Creek, Manitoba, who has a canvas and leatherworks shop.  We picked out the colours, and ‘Celyn Away’ has undergone an amazing transformation! Yes, it cost money, but buying something different would have as well, and the money invested has increased her value accordingly.  

 It’s amazing what can be done to bring something that is so tired and worn down back to life.   This is the story of a boat, but it goes for people as well.  For us, at a time of much fear and discomfort, working on this gave us something to look forward to.  Sometimes that’s all people need, to dream of something good in the future that will get them through today.

Are we going to be making our voyage in the spring?  Well that remains to be seen.  This blog was created because our intention is yes, and setting an intention is the first big step.  There are several months between now and then, and more doctors appointments that might change our course at any time, but for now our plans are to fulfill that dream, and any other’s that we’ve been putting off until the time is right.  The time is right now!