I’m back in action!
A week before I am allowed to step aboard again for a week at sea as a trainee quartermaster, I find myself regularly checking the weather app. Will it be rain gear or sunscreen? In truth, it is a rather pointless exercise, because the weather at sea cannot be captured by an app. If there is one thing I have learned over time, it is that conditions at sea can change from hour to hour, whether it is wind, rain or waves. So really, that app is of little use when I am sailing with the Eendracht. And yet, I still want to be as well prepared as possible.
That is why my sailing bag is always packed and ready, much to my wife’s frustration. It stands prominently in our bedroom. After all, you never know when you might be needed on board.
And then the moment arrives. Fully packed, I travel by train towards Rotterdam. For now, I am still wearing my everyday civilian clothes, which I will soon exchange on board for my seaman’s outfit: safety shoes, work trousers and my Eendracht polo, with my name printed just a little too large across my chest. As the landscape rushes past the train windows, my thoughts begin to accelerate as well. What will it be like to be back on board? Which crew members will I recognise, and who will be new to me? Which watch will I be assigned to? Who will be my quartermaster? Where will we sail?
While quietly musing to myself in the train, a sudden wave of uncertainty washes over me. Has it been too long since I was last on board? Will I still remember what to do if we suddenly need to reef the sails? Will it be as enjoyable and as convivial as the previous time?
What will it be like to be back on board?
The magic of the Eendracht never fails to enchant me. The moment I approach the ship, I feel as though I am coming home. Through the gates, up the gangway, and hands are already being shaken. The first joke is made and the first hug exchanged even before I enter the mess. Familiar faces greet me with just as much enthusiasm as the few crew members I do not yet know. This will be just fine again, I think to myself.
Then it is time for the palaver, the moment when the Eendracht crew gathers and the skipper talks us through what awaits us in the coming week. Who we can expect on board, what the different roles, tasks and responsibilities are, and whether there are any special circumstances we should take into account. With this check-in, it becomes official. I am back in my role on board, that of trainee quartermaster. For the coming week, I am once again a seaman with a mission: sailing together, in harmony, on a magnificent tall ship.
After the palaver, the ship is prepared for departure. A final round of cleaning here, a safety check there, an inspection of the cabins. We are ready. Ready to embark on another special voyage with a truly special crew. And that is no exaggeration. My fellow Eendracht crew members are a wonderfully diverse group of volunteers. In everyday life, they may work in the police force or fire brigade, be consultants or work in healthcare. On board, however, they serve together as boatswain, quartermaster, assistant cook or watch leader. What you do ashore does not matter. Here, you are a volunteer on the Eendracht. As a team, you work together and must be able to rely on one another, day and night.
If you have never sailed along, it is difficult to describe what life on board is really like. People sometimes ask me what it is like to be pulled from your bunk in the middle of the night, only to stand at the helm in driving rain, and why I would choose to do that. My answer is always the same. You have to experience it yourself. There are no words to fully explain how extraordinary it is to sail through a dark night, hearing nothing but the waves and the wind. There is no mobile phone, no news, no distractions, simply because out at sea there is, thankfully, no 5G. Being at sea together is all that matters, and that is what makes it magical.
And that, dear fellow Eendracht sailors, is something I hope to experience many more times: magical moments on board, where we are enchanted by true teamwork and shared purpose.
I hope to see you back on board again soon.
Folkert Huysinga
Trainee Quartermaster