A pirate looks at 40 ~ The Admiral

It’s our captain’s 40th birthday tomorrow. It's been a rough month for him full of loss and heartache so I wanted to do something meaningful for him. It’s hard to get a gift for someone like our captain so instead of buying him something, I made him something. I put together a video looking back at his life over the last 40 years. I’ll let the video do the talking but I will say this about Steve: it’s rare to find a man who has lived his life putting others before himself. A man who has loved his children with everything he has, even if their choices take them in different directions. A man who has risked his own life to save others. A man who puts God first in everything he does in his life.

A recent discussion I had was about heroes. What makes a hero? Who are the modern day heroes? Famous coaches, athletes, movie stars, billionaires? These are people who are worshiped like gods and who’s only qualifying trait is they know a sport well, they play a sport well, they are good at pretending and they made lots of money. These same "heroes" live lives full of selfishness, debauchery and sin. Are these the type of people we should be raising up as heroes? Not at all, in my opinion!!! How about the men and women who put other's needs before their own? The ones who risk their own life for others? The ones who sacrifice things they want so others may have it. The ones who serve their country, their community, their family, their Lord God. The ones like my captain. My husband. The father of my children. He is a real hero. A real man. A real father. A real veteran. He is our hero.

I recently came across a poem that hit home for me. I don’t know the author but I share it with you today in honor of my Hero, my Captain, my Steve. HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY!! I love and respect you beyond words.

You are my rock, my anchor, and my sea. I live within you, yet you hold me fast. I breathe your soul. Your thoughts so blend with mine I can’t distinguish a dividing line. Before our love is unimagined past. There is no after – now is all to me.

I love you with a tenderness my past could never fathom. Before your love was mine, the person I remember wasn't me. There was no rope of love to hold me fast to life’s one truth within its restless sea, nor happiness to help me draw a line.

Winds of the world blow wild and free, and fast obliterate the most enchanted line. But there is now a well of love in me well past the wind, the turbulence well past, a serenity within me more than mine, an inner calm more endless that the sea.

Through love we’ve found a love past yours and mine. I will hold fast to what is best in me. Love draws its own shoreline and pounding sea.

My husband’s job ~The Admiral



Daddy Steve

What does your husband do?



Hero Steve

It's a question I get a lot. I know what he did do….he was a Firefighter/EMT for 15 years, an athlete, a soldier, a hero, a model.

I know what he is….he is a father, a husband, a Christian, a disabled veteran, a provider.

I know what he does for a paycheck….he is the bike supervisor for bike rentals at a resort. But sometimes it's hard to answer that question because there's not much my husband doesn't do.

Bike Supervisor Steve



Captain Steve

• My husband is a Captain. He captains our vessels with the integrity not often seen and especially in the light of the tragic disaster of recent with a cowardly captain, we are lucky to have such a brave one.
• My husband is a plumber. He replaced and repaired the plumbing in our boat. We have running water, new faucets and will soon have 2 heads after he adds a second one.
• My husband is an electrician. He rewired lights, added fans mounted to the walls in two rooms and he has on his list to add a circuit breaker to supply more electricity to our shore power.



Diver Steve

• My husband is a diver. He dives down and scrapes the bottom of the boat, cleans the prop, checks the thru-hulls and the zinc.

• My husband is a teacher. He helps the kids with their History, Math and Science when I've reached my level of expertise.



Carpenter Steve

• My husband is a carpenter. He tore up the old damaged floor; measured, cut and installed a new floor. Cut, measured and laid down new carpet.

• My husband is a veterinarian. When our dog Ralphie ran off and came home with a large, deep gash on his leg, Steve cleaned, medicated, closed and wrapped it. Three weeks later, Ralph is a new man..er dog.
• My husband is a meteorologist. He can predict the weather better than any professional weatherman I've seen.
• My husband is a mechanic. He always repairs our cars, changes the oil, replaces brakes, and whatever else needs to be done to keep them running smoothly. He also fixes the dinghy outboard anytime something is wrong with it too.
• My husband is a diesel mechanic. He completely replaced the diesel engine (Volvo Penta MD6A) in our old boat and keeps our sailboat motors running smoothly.
• My husband is a masseur. He keeps me from having to have back surgery for my degenerating discs by his magic hands alone.

Chef Steve

• My husband is a chef. His ribs are so good; you'll swear he's from Memphis.

So what does my husband do, you ask? What doesn't my husband do, I say!!
~The Admiral

I think he might be Superman!