I was talking to a business client over the telephone just a few days ago. I was giving my usual spiel about wanting to receive more work from their company. As we talked about the current business climate and how I could achieve more work, a past experience entered my thoughts when I was 13 years of age.

I was visiting Uncle Bernard, my father’s brother, in Machias, Maine for the summer. Uncle Bernard stood six-foot four in height with salt-and-pepper hair and burly eyebrows which would capture anyone’s attention as he entered any room, especially, with his smiles and “Down-Easter” accent of witty comments and sayings.

Uncle Bernard took time to show me the interesting natural aspects of Maine’s coastal areas and life of Down-Easters with their businesses and events which make it special and unique.

My uncle showed me Jasper Beach, one of two beaches, which has this special kind of stone. These special stones can easily be polished and used in certain jewelries and trinkets.

My uncle’s wife, Aunt Jinny, inherited the old family dairy farm, Schoppee Farm, and a very small island, Hickey Island, near Englishman Bay and Little Kennebec Bay. Schoppee Farm was a very peaceful experience for such a “Southern boy” as me.

During this summer visit, Uncle Bernard arranged a family gathering on Hickey Island. I remember all of us boarding his boat and slowly heading out into the waters and into Little Kennebec Bay. I could see a boat ahead of us with a lobster trapper working his cages. As Uncle Bernard moved the boat alongside the trapper’s boat, he heartily said with a strong Down-Easter accent, “Good day, Sir! Would you have some lobsters for sale today?” “Yes, of course”, as he began pulling several of his lobster traps from the seafloor. We all watched him pull up his traps filled with beautiful large lobsters and we purchased many for the island feast.

We cordially said our goodbyes and thank yous to him and began slowly puttering towards the island. When we reached the island, we tied the boat to an old dead tree at the water’s edge and began getting our utensils, condiments and the fresh live lobsters together and began our short walk towards a sandy beach area.

Al Cheney, Roques Bluff, Machias, ME, 1966

A cooking area was arranged on the beach and the fire was started for boiling our succulent crustacean dinner. As the lobsters were cooking in water from the sea, I watched the deep bluish waves crashing onto this private and serene beach. It was a wonderful day for enjoying succulent lobster dipped in butter while experiencing the panoramic island view, listening to the waves and feeling gentle salty and warm breezes upon my skin as the sun dropped lower within the Down-Eastern sky.

I also experienced Maine’s Lobster Festival and enjoyed all the wonderful food. I remember taking a seaplane ride with my Uncle Bernard and seeing wonderful aerial views of Maine’s coastline.

Uncle Bernard and I visited a canning facility where a great Aunt Ethel worked hard packing sardines. I remember standing at the end of an old fishing pier. I looked down into a very large fishing barrel and saw a seagull standing in the bottom. The seagull was apparently searching for food in the bottom of this barrel and oblivious to its inability to fly out from this barrel. So I reached down into the barrel to grab the seagull and release him from his small stinky prison and, yes, he did bite me a few times but I did not let that deter me from freeing this seagull. I finally was able to grab this seagull and carefully remove him from the fish barrel. Uncle Bernard got my Polaroid camera and took a photograph so I could remember this experience before releasing and watching this seagull fly up into the air and join his other seagull friends.

When I think of this seagull which was trapped at the bottom of the fish barrel, I can’t help to think how it can relate to the ups and downs in life which we experience?

Imagine for a moment that you are this seagull with despair, sadness or worry. It’s your own self-imprisonment because of challenges you are experiencing within your own life. You find yourself standing at the bottom of the fish barrel and you cannot get out. It sometimes takes assistance from others in showing you the way out with their kind actions and words of encouragement and a belief in you.

What describes you today? Are you the seagull flying high in the sky with your other seagull friends enjoying life? Or, are you this seagull at the bottom of the fish barrel, imprisoned by your own thoughts, watching all the other seagull friends flying above?

Decisiveness, optimism and the willingness to change one’s life for the better are key ingredients to your success. These key ingredients must be juxtaposed with the people around you who give you good advice, assistance and the additional strength to live on and be successful within your life. Fly into the clouds and enjoy your life and humanity and empower yourself! Amen.

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