I’m not sure I have ever touched a buoy until this past weekend. And by the way, I do indeed pronounce it BOO-EE, because there doesn’t need to be any confusion when you are talking about touching them. I went camping at the glamourous Echo Lake, and took a quick dip while I was there.

I waded in the water, probably out about fifty yards or so, still on my tippy toes. I looked back and the beach was far away, about fifty yards or so, but it felt like half of a football field… I looked back out towards the water. The hills of the Qu’Appelle valley climbing up at the edges of the lake, and the buoy bobbed out another twenty feet. I never thought I’d be able to touch one of them looking from the beach, but when I got to that twenty feet or so, I said, ‘Screw it, I’m touching the buoy’

I swam. I touched the buoy. I swam back. The buoy had tonnes (metric) of algae on it, as well as tons (not metric) of creamy white bird leavings on it. But I touched it.

I see something in the distance, but I don’t know what it is. (The palm of my hand has a strong destiny line in it, I think I was told, so that means I have one solid destiny. But that’s witchcraft anyways.) When I see this thing in the distance, it looks clean, it looks sharp, it looks inviting, although I don’t know what it is. The first few steps are uncomfortable, cold, with rocks on the bottom of the feet. The next few steps are warmer, but distracting with the green seaweed hair tickling the legs. The middle steps are comfortable: the water isn’t too high or cold, and the whole body is immersed, so you look like you are right into it. The next few steps are more difficult, tippy toes and waves hitting the mouth. You are somewhat committed, but you haven’t taken the full plunge, and you haven’t reached it yet. The last neck of the journey is where it gets hard. Swimming to the buoy, achieving your destiny, and swimming back. Sounds easy, but it ain’t. And the buoy is gonna be covered in crap.

This is my life. I see that I need to be somewhere, but don’t know where it is. That is why I’m doing nothing with my life, I’m buying time until I can clearly see my buoy. And take those steps to reach it. Kick that buoy in the ass. Kick my destiny in the ass.

F trees, I climb buoys. I’m on a boat.