The school refers to everything that takes place in a more academic form – sitting, pen and papers, teacher and boards. The rest is what we call unschooling. However, it does not mean it is effortless for the parents. Quite the contrary, to include unschooling on a day to day basis requires research and dedication of time. Here is what is part of her unschooling.
I am not a teacher, but I am homeschooling Salty.
Here’s the full school program:
7 days a week, from roughly 7h30 to 8h30 – with my morning coffee.
Today minus 10 days : “We will cross the Pacific soon!!! So excited by all that! Coronavirus? Yes, yes, but there are no cases in Panama, and none in French Polynesia too. It is very sad, but at least we’re in security here.”
PLOUF!!!
-SHIT!
I grab the VHF at lightning speed.
-Handy Andy! Handy Andy! This is Pablo. Pablo.
I wait completely distraught.
-Pablo. This is Handy Andy. How can I help you?
-Just dropped my sunglasses in the water. Can you send a diver as soon as you can?
-We’re coming in an hour sharp.
-…Ok thank.
One hour! Are they crazy? This is not some dollar store glasses, they are adapted to my eyes. The water here in Luperon, Dominican Republic, is not so nice. The visibility is maybe 2 feet in front of you. There is no chance I will find my glasses myself with only snorkelling gear in 17 feet even though I dropped them right under my boat. There is no chance they will find my glasses in one hour with all the current in the bay.
-I told you you needed a something to attach them Cass, said Sam.
-OH! SHUT UP!!!
I am so upset at myself that Sam doesn’t dare talking anymore. While waiting, I realize it’s about time we leave Dominican Republic.
It started the same way 2 weeks before:
PLOUF!!!!
-SHIT! SHIT!
Water is much less pretty than in the Bahamas, although the country is much more lush.
Walking to the companionway to talk to my amazing husband cooking a glorious breakfast for the family after we had pretty rough seas (8ish feet waves) the whole night while making the crossing from Turk and Caicos to Dominican Republic:
-Sam… I just dropped your fishing knife in the water.
-My fishing knife? MY RAPALA? Not the one Vince gave me 3 years ago saying it would be THE knife when catching our fish on the boat? That Rapala?
-Well… yes.
-!&*$#(&*)…
-Hey…well…we don’t need a Rapala now. We haven’t catch a fish. In fact, the lines got all tangled at the back of the boat. Would you go untangle all that before we arrive so at least it doesn’t get stick in another boat line or worst, in our propeller…?
Trying to change subject didn’t make Sam happier that morning.
Also, the second day after we arrived, we celebrated my birthday with friends of La Metta, also in DR. Salty was so excited to show her unicorn to the other kids. (She got an egg, put in the water, bring it everywhere with you because you need to take care of said baby to come, even in the dinghy rides, grocery, etc, etc and a unicorn grow out the shell, a bit like these small sponge dinosaurs when we were young.)
-Sam did you see Salty’s unicorn after we left the pub?
-No I thought you had it?
-What do you mean I had it! Leeloo was having it I think.
-If she did then why do you ask me?
-Because we don’t have it anymore, and she doesn’t either! We lost THE baby unicorn of Salty… SHIT! SHIT!
-SHIT!
I came back to the pub the next morning, made a drawing of the lost unicorn. No unicorn.
-SHIT…
-She didn’t notice yet.
-I know, but she will eventually.
Bring a kid in a pub in DR? No problemas!
A week later, a man crossed the street and came to see me. And to my surprise, he showed me Salty’s unicorn.
-THEY FOUND IT! HOLLY SMOKE!!! I said.
-My rapala? Replied Sam.
-Of course not! I mean the Unicorn.
-Of course a unicorn. Why would we care about my very expensive knife when we can care about a dollar store unicorn. RIGHT?
I get out of my thoughts as Handy Andy arrives with the diver.
-You know there is almost no hopes Cass, said Sam.
-OH SHUT UP! (still angry).
-How much did they ask.
-No idea.
-Well I hope you realize we must pay them even if they don’t find your sunglasses Cass.
-Oh sh… yeah.
GULP. Didn’t think about that. I did not even bargain a price upfront.
-Do you think there is a chance to find them? I ask naively to Handy Andy.
“We have to pray! he says putting gas into his compressor. A lot” he adds looking seriously at me.
After 5 minutes, I was sore of crossing all my fingers in the hope we’d get lucky. The diver comes out:
-You have a good karma maam! says Handy Andy showing proudly the sunglasses. My sunglasses.
-THEY FOUND IT! HOLLY SOME!!!! I said.
Later that night:
-OUFFF….time to get out of Dominican Republic. First we lose the Rapala, then we lose the unicorn, now we lose the sunglasses! What’s next?!
-Our minds! replies Sam.
-Ha. Ha. Ha. At least we got lucky.
He turns and looks sadly at the entrance of Luperon where the Rapala fell and sits in the troubled water. And where it will remain probably for ever….
-Pffffff….talk for yourself.
Featured image: Coast of Dominican Republic is not easy to sail to say the least. A man we met told us how much he preferred his motorbike to sailing : “I can go in any wind. No weather window to wait. That’s more like freedom to me!” 🙂 I still love his thinking although pretty unpractical with 2 kids in tow.
Turk and Caicos is a place we had to wait for a weather window to cross to Dominican Republic. The weather windows are getting scarce and the wind north the coast of D.R. blows strong and steadily.
-Sam. Remember that weather window that was way to short to cross the 20 hours up to DR?
-Yeah. What about it?
-It got longer. It is stalling.
-Ok. Ok?
-Sam. What I mean, is maybe this window is what we need to cross. It is tomorrow though.
-Cass, it’s 23:45. Can’t you just come in bed and we look at that tomorrow.
-Not at all! Listen. If we don’t want to be stuck on an island where it costs 11$ to buy some hot dog buns, we have to jump on the first weather window.
-At this time of the year, there is gonna be a few a month Cass.
-Wrong!!! That was true a month and a half ago when we were in the Bahamas, winter. Now it is springs and the winds are getting stronger and steadier. It will be weeks before there is another weather window arrives.
(And that was true, because our friends already in DR waited more than a month to get a window. So much that we caught up on them and waited ourselves with them an extra 2 weeks!)
-Ok. So let’s move tomorrow afternoaaaawwwwww…. Sam yawns. Exhausted and happy to close the conversation and hit the bed.
-Sam…we have to clear the customs tomorrow before leaving around noon.
-It’s Sunday Cass, there will be no one in line. It will take 1 hour and I’ll be back.
-Ok, I’m reassured then. We will be able to leave before one o’clock, plus 20 hours, that makes for a landfall around, ehhh…
-Before 9am in D.R.
-Yeah, enough light to arrive. And just before the day wind peaks up at 11h00 am. That is perfect Sam.
-Good night Cass.
-Good night Sam.
Snore…. Snore…. O_O
-SAM!!!!!!
-Eeehhh, what? What, who? what the heck Cass? He mumbles half awake.
-It’s Sunday tomorrow. Custom will be closed!!! We won’t be able to take the window!
-We can pay overtime Cass. Like, giving an extra 15$ and they are fine wit it. You are negative. What can go wrong?
-Murphy’s law. If something can go wrong, it will go wrong.
-Pfff. Let me sleep now. Don’t bring your negativity in my dream. Good night.
The next morning, we try to find the custom’s office to be there sharp at the opening;
-It’s there! Said the kind taxi driver who brought us there for free.
-Thank you sir, say Sam.
-But there won’t be someone. There is a big funeral on the island, pretty much everyone is out there.
-Why didn’t you say that before… Any way of reaching the custom’s office. There must be someone? We are willing to pay overtime, we heard it can be done.
-Let me call my friend Dana;
“Dana? Dana! Do you know someone who works at the customs? Brigitte? You have her number? Ok.”
-She says the owner of the general store have the number of Brigitte.
-Who’s Brigitte?
-I don’t know but she might help you.
-Awesome…
At the general store the owner calls;
“Dany? Dany, Brigitte doesn’t answer. You know someone she is with? Ah. Ah. Ok.”
-We have to text Doug. He might be with her.
-Ok…you have that Doug text number.
-Wait. My uncle knows him, I’ll call him.
It goes like that a while. Until we are told a lady, Brigitte I guess, might be able to show up after the ceremony, before the reception of the funeral.
We wait. I get passive agressive, because of the stress I guess, and because I keep looking at the price in the store. Peanut butter, small pot for 12.45 USD$. Comb from 1978 still in original package, 28 USD$. Pot of strawberry jam, 17 USD$. We gotta get out of T&C before we’re ruined!
-What can go wrong!? Hein Sam!
-Cass. Don’t get upset at me! It’s not my fault the weather window is this afternoon.
The owner interrupts us :
-She waits for you.
-At the custom’s office!? That is great.
-No boy! She’s THERE, in the parking. See the truck. GO SEE HER.
Sam runs and jumps on the passenger seat of the Brigitte’s pick up truck. It is 12h45.
-Mommy, are we going to the custom’s office now? asks Salty.
-No sweety. I mean, yes. I mean, the pick up truck IS the custom’s office for today. I guess that is called overtime.
She looks outside;
-WOOOOOoowww the lady is all pretty in her dress.
-There is a big ceremony this morning. And she might want to go back real quick…
-I’m hungry Mommy, pests Mateo tired of waiting. It’s long.
-Well, as I said to Salty, I cannot imagine that takin very long, when you clear out of a country signing paper on the dash of the lady’s truck.
Sam comes back 4 minutes after.
-Let’s roll guys. We’re out of here… See Cass, nothing went wrong!
We left T&C at 13h30. And I still believe in Murphy’s law.
Featured image: a non-retouched photo of the T&C waters. Yes, it was that blue!
Written by Matey
The dignhy or zodiac is what allows us to go from to boat to shore.
Mommy told me Daddy was going to splash the boat and bring it at anchor. She says the boat is ready. Then he will pick us up in the thing they call dinghy. They say it’s like a car. Doesn’t look like one to me. No way! I will definitely go with Daddy now:
-WAIT FOR ME DADDY!!!
-Do you want another coffee Sam?
-Yeah… not so much in the mood to start over the thru-holes…
-I know honey. It doesn’t drip much, but that is the thing to do.
-I wanna splice lines in the cockpit Cass, I am very discouraged.
-Every day brings surprises on Pablo, maybe it will be a good day!
-Yeah…. Says Sam not so enthusiastically.
Cass is just crazy excited, like a dog when the bell door rings:
-Oh my god oh my god oh my god! I can’t believe that we are leaving!!!! HIIIIII! I can’t control myself, just too excited!
-Calm down, we are 10 minutes away from the boat yard only, replies Sam. We literally, JUST left the anchorage.
-HIIII!!!!!!
Kids arrived at the boat. They look at their bedroom, their toys…their new home.
-Wooooooowwwwww, says Salty.
-Woooooooowwwwoooowwww, , says Matey.
-Daddy, what is this orange thing in the middle of the living room?
-It’s a fridge Salty.
Written by Salty.
-Wake up Salty…wake up!
It’s Mommy. She wants me to get up because we are going at the airport.
-Put on your vest, and your summer coat Salty.
-But Mommy, it’s cold outside, it’s fall.
-No honey, where we are going, this will be the warmest clothes you’ll need.
