{"id":6644,"date":"2023-05-02T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-02T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/?p=6644"},"modified":"2023-05-02T07:44:05","modified_gmt":"2023-05-02T11:44:05","slug":"142-an-unexpected-delight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/142-an-unexpected-delight\/","title":{"rendered":"#142\u2014An Unexpected Delight"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\"Andy<\/figure>\n\n\n
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Blog #142 (audio)<\/div><\/div>
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Blog #142 – An Unexpected Delight<\/p>\n<\/div>

Published: <\/span>April 30, 2023<\/span><\/div>
<\/div>Audio by Andy Adkins<\/a><\/div><\/form><\/span>4<\/span> Downloads<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>
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This past week, my wife and I had the pleasure to attend a reception for local authors and artists. I wasn\u2019t sure what to expect, but since one of my simple \u201cprose\u201d writings had been accepted, I thought it would be fun to attend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several months ago, I\u2019d submitted a short piece to the local Gainesville Writers Alliance Group<\/strong> (WAG); it wasn\u2019t really a contest, per se, but I thought\u2026 \u201cwhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though my Navy days are long past, there are certain memories, events, and moments that I cannot forget and, in most cases, do not want to forget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I spent Three Years, Eleven Months, and 29 Days in the Navy<\/a><\/strong>\u2014I went in on a Monday and got out on a Friday, one day short of four years\u2014and assigned two duty stations: NAS Agana, Guam<\/a><\/strong> (\u201973-75) and USS Kitty Hawk<\/em>, CV-63<\/a><\/strong> (\u201975-77). My rating was Aviation Boatswain\u2019s Mate-Handler<\/strong> (ABH) and my primary duty was Crash & Salvage<\/a><\/strong>. I made the Kitty Hawk\u2019s<\/em> Westpac \u201975<\/a><\/strong> cruise and spent a year in the Bremerton Shipyards<\/a><\/strong> (\u201976-77).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During my short Navy \u201ccareer,\u201d I spent most of my time on the flight deck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People often think the flight deck is akin to the popular movies, The Final Countdown<\/strong> (1980) and the Top Gun<\/strong> (1986, 2022) franchise. Those aren\u2019t bad movies and, IMO, I do think the few scenes of fighter aircraft launching and recovering actually portray a somewhat realistic picture of all that goes on during flight ops. Well\u2026 except for those last scenes when everyone on the flight deck wears a sparkling clean jersey and float coat\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I digress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What they don\u2019t show in the movies is the 16-18 hour days (at least during my time) of normal flight ops, or the few times we flew around-the-clock, or the not-so-good things that happen to personnel who have their head up their asses or are in the wrong place at the wrong time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nor do they portray those times\u2026 those special moments<\/em>\u2026 when you have some down time. Those times, those moments, and those thoughts are what I tried to capture in the following piece:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From an Aircraft Carrier Flight Deck: Indescribable Beauty<\/strong>
By Andy Adkins
United States Navy (\u201973-77). Flight deck, aircraft crash firefighter.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

USS Kitty Hawk<\/em>, CV-63: 1975, Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the middle of an ocean, the sun seems brighter, the sky appears bluer, and the air tastes cleaner. I\u2019m sure there\u2019s a scientific word for this natural phenomenon, but I can only describe my own personal experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the flight deck, looking down about sixty feet to the surface, the water is so blue and so clear that now and then I\u2019d spot a humpback whale off the bow, or a school of dolphins racing each other to see who could keep up with the ship. Or I may witness a school of flying fish. If the sun was just right, the light glistens off their transparent wings as they sail 200 meters on an ocean breeze just a few feet above the calm water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Red Sky at Night\u2026 Sailor\u2019s delight. When at sea, sunrises and sunsets are nothing short of spectacular. If you happen to catch the sun just as it touches the water and there\u2019s a gentle breeze causing slight ripples upon the surface, you feel an inviting pathway, leading you right to the edge. No two sunsets or sunrises are the same. The various combinations of oranges, yellows, reds, peaches, and every hue and shade in between are breathtaking. Throw in a reflection off the ocean surface and it\u2019s a sailor\u2019s cocktail, waiting for your very soul to drink in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At night, the ship\u2019s four propellers churn up the magnificent appearance of phosphorescence. Plankton glows a beautiful turquoise blue-green in the ship\u2019s wake. Letting my eyes follow this miles-long pathway toward the never-ending horizon, where the indigo sky meets the water\u2026 well, it almost defies description.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no light pollution in the middle of the ocean\u2026 anywhere. Everything is so clear and so well-defined. The mystical moist night air fills your lungs with peace and contentment. I\u2019d lie down on the steel deck and look up at the night sky, lit up by millions of twinkling stars. It\u2019s almost as if the stars call to you with a warm, \u201cHi and welcome to tonight\u2019s special show, created just for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And with the glass-like ocean surface, you literally cannot tell when the water on the horizon ends, and the starry sky begins. The low moon seems to beckon us to walk on its reflection across the calm waters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quiet, serene, tranquil\u2014you can\u2019t help but feel there\u2019s a higher being out there, holding you in their arms, and loving you no matter what. You just feel you\u2019re being swallowed up in nature\u2019s unbound beauty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As one shipmate so eloquently stated… out there, I realize I\u2019m just one small being on one ship in one ocean on one planet in one galaxy in one universe. Yet surrounded by all this awesome beauty, I feel I\u2019m on top of the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The artist\u2019s name is Keana Poindexter-Jones<\/strong>, based in Florida. I did not get a chance to meet her at the reception. But I must tell you\u2026 I honestly didn\u2019t know what to expect of her interpretation of my descriptions. See\u2026 I\u2019ve never done this before: have an artist create a rendition of something I wrote. But, the more I looked at the painting\u2014and I\u2019ll admit, I had to gander several times\u2014the more it hit me\u2026 I think she did a brilliant job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I mean, when you think about those special moments<\/em> and that feeling of serenity and tranquility\u2026 out in the middle of an ocean\u2026 even though you\u2019re surrounded by a mass of metal, hundreds of shipmates, and noise and smells, and who knows what else\u2026 you look for peace and quiet when you can. And for those few moments, it\u2019s only you and the ocean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those of us who\u2019ve been at sea have experienced the awesome sunrises & sunsets, the millions of twinkling stars at night, and the whales, porpoises, and flying fish. You can\u2019t paint clean air, but with the surrounding ocean and animals, you can smell it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At least, I think I can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until we meet again,
Andy<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Previous Posts Mentioned in this Blog:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n