The diamonds in the water sparkled a little brighter on the Chesapeake yesterday. I’d like to believe that was a gift from my nephew Brian. I experienced two “firsts” on that ride, it was the first time in my life, I intentionally spilled a perfectly good gin drink into the Chesapeake Bay, and it was the first time I cried while on my boat.
I was ten when he was born. I am the youngest of 4 siblings and Brian made me important, he made me an Uncle. Not long after he was born, my sister and he came to live with us. Our relationship was more of a big brother, little brother than Uncle and Nephew. While I felt important, looking back I feel that I learned as much or more from him as he did from me. We grew up together. I babysat and learned responsibility. I needed to convince him to go to bed or eat his lunch and I learned salesmanship and leadership. There was a time when he was taking swimming lessons, and I was learning to drive a stick-shift. He was frustrated and told me he felt like it was too hard, and that he would never learn. We talked about how I was frustrated and thought I would never be able to drive the stick-shift and that we should both keep trying. We both learned those lessons, and more importantly the tenacity to deal with the hard stuff, and Brian could deal with the hard stuff, and yet share his infectious smile through it all.
We shared a love of the sea. We came by that from my father and from generations of Maxwells and MacNamaras before him. We have a long line of sailors. Brian never served in the Navy and never was initiated into the “Solemn Mysteries of the Ancient Order of the Shellbacks,” yet he was a true son of Neptune. He was one who “went down to the sea in ships,…and saw His wonders in the deep.” He loved the Sea, and has now gone home to the sea. The Navy Hymn has much personal meaning to me. Its first verse; “Eternal Father, strong to save, Whose arm hath bound the restless wave, Who bidd’st the mighty ocean deep Its own appointed limits keep; Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee, For those in peril on the sea!” If you have never heard it google it and listen.
So yesterday I spilled my drink into the sea in a toast to you my brother. You have crossed the bar on a new voyage and may you always have fair winds and a following sea.