Wanderlino
Arruda
Suddenly
and unexpectedly comes the desire
to write about things and happenings
that we remember, even though
distant in time and not having
anything to do with expressing
our own personal views, they keep
coming back to us. They are ideas
and memories that float on the
limit of our consciences…and
remain there, like clay, molding
and molded by our force of will,
apparently arranging the date
for its birth, natural and definite.
Many personalities live this way
and live among us, companions
of the day and night, principally
in hours of meditation, or when
relaxed, we lose the measure of
what is real and pragmatic. They
are the dreams, the elaboration
of thinking, the readiness to
transfer what happens inside us
to paper. Perhaps it is the only
manner we know of, to share with
you, dear reader, what we have
in our intimate selves.
In
this way, the literary necessity
to write about the Brazilian pioneer
Amyr Klink came to me. That young
man from São Paulo, who
crossed the Atlantic ocean, leaving
the African continent from South
Africa and coming by boat to Bahia,
in South America…alone.
I will never forget the one hundred
and one days of solitude borne
by a man so young, so courageous;
to the point of realizing one
of the most exciting, difficult
and dangerous adventures of our
century. To tell the truth, it
seems that I, never having been
solitary, I never could stop from
offering my solidarity to someone
who is capable of isolating themselves
so far from their fellows and
connect themselves so close to
nature and its dangers for so
long a time. Amyr Klink, author
of “ One Hundred Days Between
the Sky and the Sea” is
a modern Brazilian folk hero.
They
say that there is no sadness greater
than that of solitude. I don’t
really know if this is true, because,
sometimes a little distance can
be very important to all of us.
Sometimes there is nothing better
for us than a short period of
personal isolation, when we can
let our thoughts vague ethereally,
hovering over nothing in particular,
resting without ties or any other
obligation. But the sadness of
solitude for Amyr Klink was quite
different. There was the sadness
of the day, of the immensity of
the sky, of the clarity of winds
splashed with salt water, and
there was the solitude of the
nights, the fleeting companionship
of stars, the black of the darkness
or brightness of the rays of the
silvery moon playing upon the
waves of the cold, indifferent
sea. The solitude of Amyr Klink
was not a silent solitude, not
at all. Radio operators worldwide
sent out words of encouragement
and solidarity, wrapped in the
magnetism and friendship of many
different languages.
Amyr
was in love with his precious
boat, the Paraty, especially constructed
for the trip, which, of course,
naturally followed the ocean currents.
Passing by South Africa, they
would unfailingly bring our sailor
to the coasts of dear old Bahia…But
Amyr’s solitude wasn’t
quite that lonely. Even though
dolphins, seagulls and whales
don’t talk, they liked keeping
company with him. Exhibitionist
dolphins, curious seagulls and
magical phosphorescent whales
also traveled with him, exchanging
tales upon the salty waves, each
at its own pace, in an inedited
crossing of seven thousand nautical
kilometers, from the deserted
coasts of Namibia to the dancing
beaches of Salvador, the land
of all
saints. There was also a solitary
ship, which, with crew cordially
waving offerings of help to the
adventurous sailor and was dismissed.
Of
course, there were a good number
of storms, lots of water coming
from the sky, much lightning and
thunder, gale winds and waves
much, much bigger than the Paraty.
But none of this could deter our
intrepid adventurer, the most
solitary of all Brazilians and
the most fearless of all our sailors.
And the voyage, the voyage was
a wealth of teachings, so comforting
to the soul that, now with him
so close to his native soil, Amyr
interrupted his charted course,
rested, and demonstrated that
he hadn’t the least idea
of going on shore. Of course,
he was living in his world, the
world of waves and sky!
A great hero is Amyr Klink, now
author of “100 Days Between
the Sky and the Sea”.
