Date7 March at 2305

PositionS 44° 25’/ E 97° 30′

I have been trying to think of something inspirational to say to reflect the progressive and forward thinking nature of how this day came about. However, after reading your messages to me there is nothing I can write that can beat them. So I changed my thoughts to think about what has really inspired me so far.

Learning about people pushing the boundaries and stretching their comfort zones has always enthralled me whether it is Ellen MacArthur overcoming the adversities that nature’s hostile environment offered, or Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman making their journey of ‘The Long Way Round.’ Or reading how Sir Peter Blake never gave up on what he believed in and achieved so much in his prematurely short life.

Other people’s plight against nature, opposition and beliefs is inspiring and can have a tremendous effect on lifting your own spirits and overcoming your own hurdles but I have also learnt after being out here alone for so long that other simple pleasures in life can have just a dramatic effect on your spirits. It could be seeing the sun after several days of an overcast sky, or sailing into a sunset. Seeing the colours spread across the morning sky as the first hints of dawn and sunrise beckon. Conquering the fiercest of nature’s environments as you sail out from the traces of a storm that you have survived.

I have a small number of these experiences now that I can draw on and gain strength from, but none of these can match the strength I get from reading everyone’s support to Aviva and I. It is overwhelming and very humbling to think that I could touch so many lives in my adventure around the globe.

The everyday hustle and bustle of the daily routine very rarely gives us time for thought and reflection. Life passes us by in a whirl sometimes. Sailing this voyage and spending this excessive amount of time on my own has allowed me more than enough time for introspection and thoughts for the future and where I want to go and who I want to be. Now finally having a few days of sailing without extreme conditions I have had chance for some well-needed rest and it has allowed me to reflect on my past week and the extreme experiences I have had. I have gained more strength from them and shown myself an inner strength that I didn’t know I already had.

If I can pass anything on this week, it would be to take five minutes over a coffee break and ask yourself what inspires you and what makes you tick. I firmly believe once you can acknowledge this you will naturally seek it more often and who knows what you’ll be overcoming in the weeks to come with a hidden strength you never even knew you had.

Dee and Aviva