You can see ROZ’S ROUTE here. Each dot links to the blog from that day.104 nautical miles to go. (This may be updated as the day goes on.)
Roz’s latest Podcast: Sharky McShark is now live.
Final Philosophy Friday
This will, barring unforeseen disasters, be my last Philosophy Friday blog from the Indian Ocean. I wish that I could, like a guru returning from the desert/wilderness/tree, I could get up on my proverbial soapbox and reveal the meaning of life, the universe, and everything.
Unfortunately, that is beyond my pay grade, and most certainly beyond my mental or spiritual capabilities. Additionally, we may have to accept that there is no single, simple, all-encompassing answer… apart from “42”, of course. Life is just not that neat and tidy – and even if it was, we humans would inevitably find a way to make it more complicated.
Even though our collaborative musings over the last 5 months may not have led us to any dazzling new revelations, I hope that they have, at least, made us all look at things a bit more closely and with a more inquiring mind. They certainly have done for me. It has stretched my ocean-addled mind to try and articulate some of my ideas, and your feedback has always provided me with food for thought.
I’m not going to try and speak for all of us, as it will only get me into trouble, but i would like to try and reach some tentative conclusions from our blog-based dialogue. There follows a summary of what I have been trying to say, combined with new ideas that have come from your comments.
For whatever quirk of evolutionary dynamics, we humans have developed an ability to consider the future. That future is not predetermined, but is created through the choices that we make every day. Some of those choices are made consciously, although many are made passively or unthinkingly or “because we’ve always done it that way”.
Given our present situation as an increasingly endangered species – mostly through poor choices by ourselves and our predecessors – it would be a really, REALLY good idea if we started exercising our free will to make better choices. Creating this shift in consciousness is challenging, not least because our “free will” is all too often tainted by preconditioning that we may not even be aware of. We can hope that this present era will see an increase in the number of people who do the work necessary to clarify their thoughts and to make wise choices.
The longer we continue to blunder on blindly, the more we are reducing our options for the future. We may end up painting ourselves into such a tight corner that – although we will still have free will – our freedom of action will become seriously constrained. But even if the worst comes to the worst, remember Viktor Frankl in Auschwitz – he had extremely limited options, yet still exercised his free will in his decision to behave always with dignity, humanity, and sympathy. But let’s do what we can now to ensure that we never end up in such a desperate situation. Let’s maintain Ultimate Flexibility regarding our future, keeping our options open until we have better information available.
Change is undoubtedly needed at policy level, but we can each start by exercising our free will carefully and consciously in our own lives to create a new culture that embodies values such as happiness, resilience, and self-reliance. I believe in tipping points: although it may seem impossible to uplift the 7 billion people on the planet, we can start by working on ourselves, and by spreading the word. We have nothing to lose, and potentially much to gain. As the wise man said, “we don’t know enough yet not to be optimistic”. By maintaining a belief that we CAN change the world, we feel engaged and empowered, rather than hopeless and helpless.
And if all else fails, we can do worse than resorting to that other uniquely human trait – a sense of humour. Write a limerick about the end of the world, read The Hitchhiker’s Guide To the Galaxy, or whistle a merry tune. Come what may, you’ve got to laugh. Always look on the bright side of life….!
Sponsored Miles: Thanks to those who had faith that I would get this far: Rich and Jolly King, Larry Grandt, Aimee Divine (for Theo Hoath), Linda and Graham Pugh, Louis Girard, Molly McCallum, Gina Alzate; also to Michelle Driskill-Smith, Wolfgang Stehr and Louis Girard – who expected me to go even further!
Best wishes fro the last few Days Roz.
David Church
It’s not a limerick, but a small poem from way back in High School:
I hope we’ll all be double-jointed
When the end of the world is neigh
Then we can all bend over backwards
And kiss our *** goodbye.
Keep on rowing, and don’t stop working for a better future, Roz. One will soon be at an end, but the other will continue on (and now I have Celene Dion singing in my head).
–Tom
Wow!! Only a few more days Rozzie!! Huge HUGE good luck for the final push (row!). Looking forward to buying you several celebratory ‘sustainable’ pints in that very pub in Salcombe when you’re next in Devon (hopefully festive ones?). Lots of love & hugs Celina, Julian, Barney & Georgia XXX
It ain’t over till it’s over….
Great perspective, Roz. Have a wonderful last few days on the water.
Sending well wishes, love and much success.
http://www.ilkleygazette.co.uk/news/9278219.Roz_will_be_first_woman_to_row_across_three_oceans/?ref=mr
All the best wishes from Yorkshire !
Would you be interested in seeing Mauritius via webcam?
Click on www.maps.google.com
In the prompt/search box on upper portion of screen cut and paste this coordinate:
-20.071411,59.7052
It is Roz’s approximate latitude and longitude in the Indian Ocean
Click on the blue magnifying glass button directly to the right of the search box.
Zoom out or in using the left hand plus or minus button until both the island of Mauritus and Roz’s estimated position is on the same page
Hold your mouse over the square button labled “Photos” at the right top then click on the pop up button “Webcams” Three webcams are operational in real time on MauritusThe one closest to Grand Baie is “Live view from Le Meridien lle Maurice Resort” Click on that thumbnail.
Row Roz Row
~Jay
Roz! It’s like the end of an era; no more philosophy fridays; it is with some level of regret …but what an accomplishment 😉
Words can’t do you justice in my view, you are The One…
Row well Roz, enjoy you last few days at sea.
If you suffer the ills of not knowing
when, how, and where your life is going
you might as well hop in a boat
try your best to stay afloat
and blog the new Hitchhiker’s Guide to Rowing
—–
They say forty two was the best
Deep Thought could conjure when pressed
For one giant calculation
The universe’s ultimate conflation
Requiring over seven million years to digest.
Then there was that unfortunate mess
When the Vogons in pursuit of hyperspace progress
Destroyed the mice’s plan
To extract the ultimate question
Five minutes before the Earth’s best guess.
So they awoke Slartibartfast for Mark Two
And the mice wondered what they could do
To alter the equation
Prevent another early cessation…
BEHOLD! The Rowing Roz Savage Debut!
She would row across Earth’s oceans
Do her best to stir up some commotion
Focus earthlings on their actions
Urgent realities, dire abstractions
To build a rising wave of unstoppable devotion
The mice now excitedly watch and wait
From their interdimensionally infinite figure eight
Having watched not one or two
But the three ocean crossing revue
Ever closer, the final adventure’s maturity date.
I’m all for your idea of creating “a new culture that embodies values such as happiness, resilience, and self-reliance” although it isn’t exactly new – it existed in my home country up to about the late ’50s and in the US until the ’30s but then governments started to interfere and remove much of the need for self-reliance and resilience. That trend continues to this day, although there are signs that the fiscal situation in Europe is forcing people to revise their thinking. In the US, the trend continues under the present administration which is forcing government into areas that conflict with the very structure of the federation.
How to muster willWhen earth moving must I do?
For with each oar stroke, nav check, blog post, podcast
Stuck my spade into dirt
Until garden had I graded, trenched, irrigated, planted
New seasons ahead me lie
Yet plans a rower to retire
Whose pattern will be my guide?
All good thoughts, prayers and wishes for Godspeed and safely land ye, Roz.
Wishing you all the best in your life’s adventure’s next chapter.
In health and happiness,
Janis
You were blogging before you were ocean rowing, and I suspect (and hope) you will continue to blog after you retire your oars. Perhaps it will not be daily, but the discussion will continue; deep thoughts, casual observations, humor and all. Best wishes and prayers for your last few thousands of oar strokes.
.-. .-. .-. (soon to stand for “Rest Roz Rest)
Tweet: at 0200 utc -20.00392 59.14408 89 miles to go.
Our friend has blogged that she needs a big beard.
Appearing tipsy is all she has feared.
Friday was philosophical,
Monday will be demonstrable!
But to us her Rozlings she is quite endeared ❤
Row knowing we love you, Roz!
Wow! down to 2-digit distance left to row.
Are you ready to face the world once you make landfall? Hope you’ll continue your Philosophy Fridays on your blog, even if not every week.
Enjoy the last days of your amazing journey.
Freewind (www.sailbayofislands.com)