Morning grace

We've woken (or rather, I've woken, being the person allowed to sleep from 3 am to 6 am) to overcast skies. The breeze stayed away last night, and though it's building now, it is still light-ish and the seas comparatively flat (the computer is almost level). Hallelujah! We turned off the engine at dawn and are sailing with a genoa and one reef in the mainsail. With an easterly of a pleasant 15 knots, we're making over 7 knots - "oh, seven and a half, Mary", Alex calls down to me (if you don't know why he calls me Mary, don't ask!). That's about what we've been doing overnight with motor and sails, but so so nice not to have the chug of that very useful engine.
To celebrate with us, a pod of dolphins has been playing around the boat, a baby one with extra energy to flip its tail, the big grand-daddy dolphins like submarine shadows until they do that thing they do, gracefully arching and diving in pairs or threesomes. Awesome to watch.
Last night's treat for the moon-deprived sailor was phosphorous in the surge, great chunks of it, or so it seemed, splashing out of the bow waves which Kukka throws up with each forward motion. It was like watching magical shiny spangles on a net dress, or Christmas lights in the dark.
I've got one more loaf of bread in me before the pitch of the boat becomes untenable, I hope. Better get going on it.

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