password] rachel25
[position]36 00.000s 102 31.200w
[status] On passage to Valdivia, Chile from Auckland NZ.
Day 32, Double special day today.
Today is Grayson's 4th birthday. Our eldest grandson. It's hard being here and not being there. It's hard for us but maybe not yet for him. He will have plenty of excitement and plenty of presents. He will not be missing his Nana and Pops who have never been there for his birthdays. Ana and I both come from families whose grandparents were remote, shady background figures. Our daughters never really knew their grandparents, the world is too big and they lived too far away. We would like to do a little better. Make even a small enduring impact on their lives and futures, by spending time with them. They are big stars on our eastern horizon.
Today is also Burn's Day. The day when the Scots celebrate the life and work of Robert (Rabbie) Burns often by taking part in a Burns Supper. Burns was a man whose fame followed his death but whose notoriety preceded it. He was a man of the people, a man who enjoyed life, a man who enjoyed a drink, and more than a few women, but a man who delved deep into the character, morals and ethics of those he chose to portray in his work. He managed to make an enduring impact.
So Grayson and Rabbie, a toast to you both.
Ithaka's Burns Supper will not be featuring Haggis this year.
Nae haggis for us the nicht. Weel ha' venison tho wi tatties, neeps, beets an' oatcakes and, o' course, twa drams, ane for each o' thee, tae wash it a' doon.
And, in Rabbie's words, a toast to the world, for the sake of the grandchildren.
Then let us pray that come it may,
As come it will for a' that,
That sense and worth, o'er a' the earth,
May bear the gree, an' a' that.
For a' that, an' a' that,
It's coming yet for a' that,
That man to man, the warld o'er,
Shall brothers be for a' that.
From A MAN'S A MAN FOR A' THAT by Robert Burns 1759 - 1796
[speed] 7.5 knots
[heading] 090 true
[weather] Wind NW 20 knots. 0.5m waves on long wavelength ocean swell. Sky 100% cloud. Baro 1016,
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