Preview: The Daughter of a Sailor

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In a special guest video, Leney Breeden takes us along her journey of being the “Daughter of a Sailor”.

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29 Responses So Far to “The Daughter of a Sailor

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    Chris Moore says:

    Thank you Leney.
    I am an old man compared to you. I thought about my father as your essay unfolded. My father has been gone almost 30 years. His presence brought joy and unity and forgiveness into my world. Since his death family meals and what I expected in life have all vanished into time. I remember living in the Mississippi delta for several years. It became home. The pace of the river changed me. I grew up inland and didn’t fish or boat. Under the bridge to Grand Isle I learned to appreciate the water. Cold dawn mornings with my wonderful Father-in-law taught me about fishing. We would follow the birds & catch the fish. One very windy & choppy day we returned to camp with only a dozen fish. I sheepishly asked him what was wrong? He scowled at me with a smirk & blurted “Son, that’s why they call it fishin’ not catchin’!
    He passed just a year after my father. I miss choosing the ferry over a bridge on the river. My path has been redirected. Struggling for survival a sea of people is my voyage. Thanks to stories like yours I hold out hope. Hope that one day I will have a chance to shape some wood into a boat & offer it to one of my sons. And I hope their daughters will write about the adventures of their lives as sweetly as you.

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    Rod Carr says:

    Wonderful relaxing video to watch during these troubling times we are in during 2020.

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    graham watson says:

    Great video. Beautifully expressed thoughts. I only wish my daughter felt the same way about sailing. Thankfully my son does.

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    Ronald Azar says:

    Beautiful words and images, so inspirational.
    Hats off

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    Diane Pool says:

    Yes, truly deeply felt and shared. Much appreciated on many levels. Your own love of simply being on the water echoed my own recognition of ‘coming home’ the first morning I woke up aboard a boat, but it was your tribute to the gifts your father’s love gave that mirrored memories of mine, with my husband’s love for boats and sailing. I’m still living aboard the boat we built, even though he has passed on and it’s been ages since PILAR has sailed. I am so grateful for your video essay. It is a joy to all of us who have been blessed by others who brought these same reverences into our lives. It is a wonderful little portal to our own (shared) memories.

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    Baxter Evans says:

    What an awesome story, I don’t have a daughter but if I did, I could only wish she’d have such a beautiful soul as Leney.

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    William English says:

    Just beautiful! From any angle, the area, the boat, and Lenny herself. A wonderful expression. of love for the man and his marvelous boat. Well done, Lenny, well done!!

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    steve johnson says:

    Well Leney, your presentation brought tears and upon it’s conclusion a bit of a choking session of emotion. I too have a marvelous young daughter, recently becoming a mom. She is such marvelous woman, mother, artful in all she does. She loves me a great deal, is a gentle kind patient friend, who shares her life richly with me. All of you dear words reminded me of how much she loves me and what a stupendous treasure that is. It’s funny how this film share of boats/water, has ended up drenching my face and shirt collar! Wishing you good times!

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      Leney Breeden says:

      Steve,
      Thank you for your heartfelt and meaningful comment. Now seeing all of the comments I’d missed before, I wish I could respond to each and everyone on here. But I wanted to respond to yours especially because Steve from OCH sent this to me in an email last week and it made me revisit this video and watch it again.
      Truthfully it makes me choke up as well, even in the almost two years since I made it. I am incredibly blessed to have the relationship I do with my Father (if you are interested in seeing more of our adventures you can actually find us on Instagram at @tumblehome.us) and though I have long been aware of that, reading everyone’s echoes of how much it reminds them of their ties to their own daughters solidifies and reminds me of that in such a precious way.
      Thank you again for your kind words, they mean more than you know.

      Now go take that grandchild of yours sailing.

      xo

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        steve johnson says:

        For a guy,a west coast guy,artist,builder,traveler,adventurous sort,the finding of emotion draped over the ‘front-door’ happens regularly. Leney seems to comfortably wear her heart plainly upon her wet weather gear. Seems that’s one of the struggles we men have,that deep connection to what matters to us,and how to explain what it is,and where it lies in our lives. To know we are deeply loved by our children seems to be the big one on the important list . Feeling our children see us as a mentor of sorts,a trusted pal,someone to lean on.. is such a treasure.

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    Dennis Sager says:

    what a wonderfully overwhelming video. . . .Leney beautifully puts into words many of the joys of a life in small boats. Thank you for sharing.

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    Craig Collins says:

    Yes, I agree with David Satter when he says that anyone with a daughter is wiping their eyes right now. That is also how Leney’s video essay affected me. Dad, you are one blessed dude. Now, my daughter lives far away in Melbourne, Aussie-land and I in Oregon. But the memories remain of our sailing days. Thank you Leney for sharing. God bless you and your dad!!!

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    Sandy & Sidney van Zandt says:

    Lovely set of photos…. We built a 39 ft steel cutter Wake an fitted her out on Broad creek in Deltaville…. We came over to Gwens Island many times to visit Gil Klingle and David Judson,who did some of the very nice woodwork on our boat ” Sequel”.
    We shoved off on a Circumnavigation from Milford Haven in 1989 and returned 6+ Years and 43,000 nm later… Lots of great memories…

    A balanced lug is my favorite small boat rig..

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    Linda Robertson says:

    This was so beautiful , thank you for share it “

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    Joy Phillips says:

    Thank you for sharing your relationship with your father and the environment. Watching this video was so evocative & totally took me back to my childhood with the times lovingly spent with my father sharing his passion on/around the water and sailing. These experiences together made even more precious as he died when I was 23, right after my daughter was born. And so the cycle continues…

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    Charles Hoover says:

    I’m envious of your father and admirous of you.

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    Daren Lindley says:

    Leney, You are amazing. Your art stands on it’s own two legs. I, of course, love boats. Which is why I am on this website. But you captured the reason. I have a grand daughter who is 2 years old. I dream every day of taking her out on the Columbia river and setting up a picnic site or camp site and having adventures with her that are out of the normal world we live in. I saw that in your eyes. Leney, your video doesn’t just advocate for cool boats. You advocate for the deepest and best relationships we can have as humans. Thank you.

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    David Satter says:

    Beautiful , Anyone with a daughter is now wiping the tears from their eyes. I sailed with my daughters when they were younger, great memories. Now that their in college and I sold the boat, It’s hard but good to watch videos like this. I’m working on getting or building that next boat now. Dave

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    Ian Anderson says:

    Thank you for your beautiful essay, Leney. My daughter is intellectually disabled and will never be able to express herself in such a way but I do know that when she was young and I was able to take her out sailing on my 19′ trailerable, she was immediately calmer and could communicate her joy in her surroundings and their sensory input. I hope one day to be able to bring that magic back. Thanks again.
    IanA

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    Michael Hiss says:

    Vielen Dank für dieses schöne Video. Kleine Schiffe, große Freude, ganz großes Abenteuer.
    Grüße aus dem Schwarzwald Michael Hiss
    Thank you for the great video. Smal boats, great joy and very big adventure.
    Regards from Black Forest. We have a beautiful lake, 7 km long, 1.000m NN (realy high See, German for Lake) and part of a nature park. Just a smal village, the rest is nature. Frorest and grasland with cows, sheeps and plenty of wild flowers.

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    George Weinbrenner says:

    So nice. Beautiful commentary on life and sailing. Lucky Dad to have such a daughter.

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