The June issue of Working Waterfront featured a brief article about my work on “exceptional experiences” among fishermen. Several readers saw the article and followed up, which I greatly appreciate.  I promised to keep editor Tom Groening up to date on my progress. Here’s the first installment.

Seven fishermen have shared their stories. Each experience is compelling. It’s not easy getting a fisherman to talk, so I will say up front how thankful I am to those who have been willing to do so.

Three fishermen have had near drowning experiences. In fact, all of the fishermen seem to know at least one or more people who have drowned at sea. Often these include family members. I thought I understood that fishing can be one of the most dangerous professions around, but this point has now been fully impressed upon me.

Each man has had a different response to his experience. For one in his early 20s, a brush with death offered a greater sense of peace and independence. Nearly dying gave him an insight into how brief life can be and how important it is to make each day count.

Another young man, who at the time didn’t take relationships too seriously, was moved to marry the woman he knew was “the one” and together they’ve had three children. His memory of nearly drowning is almost physical, especially on days when the wind and water have a certain feel. And he still fishes with the same guy who went down with him on that cold February afternoon.  

Still another, who nearly died at 17, thinks little of it.

“It was something that happened,” he says. Pulled from the water, he took some time to recover by himself on deck, went below to put on dry clothes, and came right back up to continue fishing.

Some have had truly mystical experiences.

One captain’s story unfolded over a series of weeks as he contracted to sail two people to Belize. On the way, he playfully threw a bottled message into the Caribbean Sea. After a series of strange synchronicities, the trip took a dark turn as the captain completed his contract and flew home to Maine.

Less a month later he got a call from someone who’d discovered his bottle on a southern beach. That same day, just hours earlier, he’d received word that a member of the crew had died by his own hand.

Some experiences involve a sense of wonder.

In what seems like a moment of clarity, a fisherman might look around at the raw power and abundance of the ocean, and be nearly overwhelmed with gratitude.

“I don’t want to use words like magic or anything like that,” said one man, “but to see the amount of life that’s in the ocean and how fast things can change.” He describes Mother Nature as incredible, “cruel but also immensely complex,” and beautiful in her complexity.

Some experiences seem other worldly.

“I can’t put it into words,” said one man, “but I’ve seen things I can’t explain. At first I thought it was a falling star, but then it stopped right in front of me. I turned my head. It kind of blinded me. And when I turned around it was gone.”

This experience happened over 40 years ago and the fisherman who saw the lights has never forgotten. He cannot say what it was or why he saw it. But it was not normal.

Why are these experiences important?  They give us a sense of the extraordinary. They offer a depth of meaning that is all too rare. The very fact that these experiences are difficult or even impossible to explain shakes our world. Even if it’s only for a brief moment, we are awakened to something beyond the everyday.

“The ocean is a very, very powerful thing,” said one fisherman.  “Don’t get me wrong, but I pity anybody that’s a dry land person. I really do. Love ’em dearly, but the ocean is an incredible thing.”

If you have an experience to share I’d love to hear it. I honor all confidentiality.

Amy Haible at anhaible@comcast.net  or at 207-729-4029.