“Cece, I didn’t give you the phone for calls to complain every five minutes. There is nothing wrong with the other kids. Do you or your sister have a real emergency?” I stressed into the phone at my oldest daughter, Ceona, who was going on about why she needed to leave the summer camp program I had them in for the next few weeks.
I could admit a phone wasn’t the smartest thing to give a seven-year-old, but this was the first summer my dad couldn’t keep the girls. Instead of daycare, I thought the summer camp option would work best and give the girls a head start on the next school year, especially since I was transferring them to Little Einsteins. I was already regretting it the more Ceona called. It had only been an hour and she had managed to be on my line three times, one of them being ten minutes after I dropped them off this morning. I had just made it to Drifted and Anchored, my ferry and party yacht boat service, when this call came in.
The ferry was another means of transportation from the island to the mainland and vice versa. I offered a passenger transport on my double decker ferry with limited space for a few vehicles at a time on the lower level. The service had beensteadily growing over the past couple of years now. What once was a few times a week route was now an everyday, all-day thing. Great for business, but sometimes took a lot of time out of my schedule with my girls.
This pushback from Ceona didn’t come as a surprise. My baby girl knew school was out and wanted to be down here with me like she normally was. This year though, since Neela was finally old enough to attend the summer camp too, I thought it would be better for me to slowly move them down here once the party side of my service officially opened for the season. We had a couple of people request the service in late April, but reservations weren’t required until late May. By then, the girls and I would be down here for the remainder of the summer. This was my way of giving them a vacation while I still had to work. My dad would come to act as a childcare provider while he got to lay out by the water.
“Daddy, this is an emergency. This little boy keeps breathing next to me and I can’t hear myself think. And who knows what Neela is going through. They separated us by age so she’s not with me. This is a disaster, you have to come pick us up.”
I dragged my hand down my face just as the sound of the bell on the door alerted me that my main crew was making their way inside.
“’Sup, Cap.” That was Tate, my first skipper who also doubled as my engineer. Since I offered more than one service, he and Damien, my second skipper, often drove the other yachts or the ferry whenever I needed. I tried to be as hands on as I could, though there were days when I wasn’t able to. So they came in handy.
I switched hands so I could angle the phone to my ear and dap him up just as Farrah came in behind him. She was my main stewardess. It was her and three other ladies—Erin, Kiana, and Andrea—who handled the cleaning and hospitality service partof my business. Though Farrah only handled the ferry, since it was my main source of business and a bigger vessel, she also handled the schedule for the ladies under her.
“Hey, Captain.” I smiled briefly before I put my attention back on Ceona who was still going on. They both punched in then headed out to begin their shifts. Today was a light day for us. The only vessel on the water was the ferry and I had Tate handling that. We didn’t have any scheduled trips on the party yachts since the season for them hadn’t officially started. That side of my business typically picked up when the weather broke. We had a couple weeks before that happened, so I had my other crew on deep clean and maintenance duty to get us prepared. The sound of the bell had me looking up to see the rest of my crew walking in to clock in.
“Cece, we talked about this. I have to work and you agreed to be a big girl for me just until next month or so. Let me get the crew readjusted then you and Neela will be with me every day. I need to clean our house before we can stay for the summer.”
“Daddy, that’s four more weeks at least. I don’t think I’ll survive this. Why can’t we go with Uncle Tunk? He’s not busy.” The sound of the music coming from the deck let me know the crew started cleaning.
“Bye, Cece. I’ll be there to pick you and Neela up at two. That’s only a couple hours from now. Do you think you can make it until then?”
“No.”
I let out a humorous sigh as I quickly decided not to further indulge her and this conversation. My workday was just getting started and Ceona would live.
“Perfect. Love you, see you then. Oh, and the next time you use the phone while you’re there and it’s not an emergency, I’ma take it back.” I waited to hang up until I at least heard her groans.
“Man, this ain’t even preteen to the teenage years; how the hell am I going to make it with two of them?” I asked myself just as I stepped out on the deck where three out of four beauties were. Two mid-sized yachts, one massive yacht, and one ferry that handled daily transportation to and from the island to the mainland. My crew might’ve been small, but my business was booming.
“Yo, Cap, the straps are on their last leg on a couple of these life jackets. We’re going to need to replace them before the next cruise,” Damien called out from one of the mid-sized yachts.
“Check the jackets on the twin. We just won’t book that one until the replacements come in. We should be okay though. Since you’re up here, I’ll go down and do the cabins,” I said as I climbed onboard the first baby.
The moment I stepped on and felt the first sway welcoming me back home, my mood immediately shifted, my shoulders dropped and I released my stress. I loved the water. This was my calming place. Five years ago this was all I had to make it through after losing my wife Leslie during childbirth with Neela.
Me and the water had a sacred bond that healed my broken heart and taught me how to breathe again.
The waves that swayed me gently were the hugs I yearned for from her and my mom both in those dark moments. Back then, if it wasn’t for my pops and my brother, I didn’t think I would even have the girls today. I spent so much time just drifting around this island, questioning why God took her, as if I wasn’t already hurting from being a motherless child. It was me and my own personal storms for months, abandoning my responsibilities as a father.
It took battling the water for my life in an actual thunderstorm for me to realize just like the storm my pain would pass. That day, I left my broken heart lost at sea and made my way home to my girls.
So now, whenever I need to leave something behind, I come out here and let the waves soothe my soul.
By the time I looked up it was time for me to hit the road so I could make it to pick up the girls.
“Aight, I’m headed to the mainland to get Cece and Neela, will y’all be good for the rest of the day?” I asked Farrah who was back from a quick turnaround on the ferry.
Farrah just waved me off with her white towel and I headed off.
“Tell Tate I said to lock the doors when y’all leave.” A quick nod and I was out, now speeding to make it across the bridge and to the summer camp in time.
By the time I made it to the park, the girls were the only kids left standing with a camp counselor. I cursed lowly as I glanced at the clock and saw I miscalculated the drive and my ten-minute delay had me out here looking like a negligent parent.
I pulled up, parking crooked as hell right in front and jumping out to see a scowl on Cece’s face while Neela wore a somber expression as she held her big sister’s hand.
“I know Daddy’s late and I apologize. Why didn’t you call me?” I addressed the girls.
