Chapter 2: "WE'RE  NOT AFRAID TO DIE ... IF WE CAN ALL BE TOGETHER"

%%Written by: Gorden Cook and Alan East%%

Table of contents:

• Summary
• Meaning of some phrases and Glossary
• Textbook Questions and Answers.

Summary:

• The author, his wife Mary two children Suzanne and Jonathan tried to duplicate the round the world voyage in their professional ship The Wavemaker'.

• There were two crewmen, an American Larry Vigil and a Swiss Herb Seigler.

• The journey would take 3 years and cover a distance of 2,55,000 km.

• The first phase of the journey was 1,05,000 km. This was upto Cape Town in South Africa.

• The second phase consisted of 1,50.000 km. By this time they would reach Australia on 25th Dec. The 'Wavemaker' was to be in the southern Indian Ocean by 1977.

• The voyage was started in July 1976. Gordon Cook, 37 years old, took his inspiration from captain James Cook about 200 years before.

• The family went to duplicate the world voyage but were struck by waves, hazardous waves.

• Their escape is described here. It tells us about the courage and optimism. They exhibited great skill.

• Death I could have swallowed everyone. But they showed exemplary courage and understanding even in the face of death.

• New year was celebrated there in Cape Town.

• But on 2nd January the sea became very stormy.

• This continued for 3 days. The ship was damaged. The water flew into it.

• The ship could go down any moment. Each of them showed unusual courage. The waves were huge.

• The ship rose high with the waves. Every precaution was taken to save lives. The storm became worse.

• Gordon was badly hurt. At one instance he was thrown overboard.

• It was his lifeline (rope) that pulled him back into the ship. His left rib was cracked, teeth were broken.

• Yet he tried to control the ship. The lower deck was smashed. Water rushed in. The sailors tried to pump water out

• His daughter's head had been hurt. Hand pump was blocked. 2nd electric pump was started.

• There were big holes in the lower deck. Later they were plugged. They had to keep pumping the water whole night.

• Radio signals were sent out for help. But there was no response.

• On 3rd January the water level was under control. 15 hours they had struggled but they survived. It was 4th January.

• They had been pumping water continuously for 36 hours. No sails could be put up on the main mast.

• So they hoisted storm jib and continued the voyage to where the two islands were.

• On 5th January the situation was again horrible. The children's morale was high. They were not afraid of death.

• Gordon kept the undamaged side of the ship towards the oncoming waves. Water continued to get into the ship.

• On January 6th the Wavemaker had survived through the storm. Gordon kept on looking for the island which was 65 km wide.

• Sue had experienced head injury. Larry steered the ship to 185°. At 6 a.m. the island of Amsterdam was located.

• At that time it appeared as if it was the most beautiful island. On the following morning they were cheered by 28 inhabitants of the island.

Meaning of some phrases and Glossary:

1. sailing in the wake of-to arouse conscious interest in something in the same path of travel
2. to encounter-to come across, to face
3. to change for the worse- to bring about bad results
4. double-lashed - fastened together
5. to ride over- to overcome
6. pop out - to appear suddenly
7. sailed through the air - passed through the air
8. level rose threateningly - (here) the level of water increased causing fear
9. night dragged on - the night passed very slowly
   10. chances would be slim - chances would be very less
   11. to keep pace - to move with same speed
   12. to find no words - to be unable to speak
   13. to feel the end was near- to feel that death was going to occur soon
   14. the wind was easing - the wind was losing its strength
   15. to make an allowance - to consider something when making a plan or doing a calculation
   16. to beat back the westerly winds - to face the westerly winds again
   17. matter-of-fact - to be sure

to gaze with relief- to look at something with pleasant and relaxed feeling

Textbook Questions and Answers:

^^(1) List the steps taken by the captain.^^

(a) to protect the ship when rough weather began.

Ans.

• Gordon Cook set sail in 1976. He had built for himself a huge boat and called it `Wavewalker'.
• The journey was to be 2,55,000 km. On second of January 1977, while they were in the southern Indian Ocean, about 3500 km from Cape Town, the weather suddenly became terrible.
• The sea became stormy. The ship was caught in the stormy sea. It rose to the top of each wave.
• The captain had taken various steps to protect themselves from the fury of the storm.
• First of all he had dropped down the jib (small sail) to slow down the speed. He secured everything tightly with ropes. He attached lifelines to the life-rafts.
• Then he made everyone to put on their oilskins and life jackets.
• These precautionary measures later proved to be insufficient.

^^(b) to check the flooding of water in the ship.^^

• Answer

• At 6 p.m. on second January 1977 it appeared that the storm had calmed down.

• The wind stopped blowing and the sky grew dark.

• A roaring sound was heard. A huge cloud was seen closing on the ship.

• But the cloud turned out to be a huge wave. By the time it approached the ship the roaring transformed into a thunder.

• The torrent of water exploded on the deck. There was water everywhere on the ship.

• It had entered the lower parts of the ship.

• The captain went down to find Larry and herb trying to pump out the water.

• He plugged the big hole from where the water was gushing it.

• Debris floating around the cabins had block the hand pumps.

• Only one electric pump was in working order.

• He connected it to the out-pipe and it started working.

• With these efforts he was able to check the flooding of water in the ship.

^^2) Describe the mental condition of the voyagers on January 4 and 5.^^

Answer:

• Frustration was written in bold letters the faces of the voyagers.
• Ceaseless efforts had brought very little relief to them.
• But they did not lose hopes. They had been pumping out the accumulated water for the last 36 hours.
• A few centimetres of water was still left. Because the of the strong wind no sail could be put on the main mast.
• If they did the pressure could further damage the ship. So they hoisted only the storm jib.
• They tried to head towards the direction of the two islands. That day they had their first meal in almost two days.
• Hopes of survival were almost nil as black clouds began to build up, the wind became stormy and the waves rose higher.
• On January 5 the situation became worse. The weather was horrible. Frustration again dominated. Gordon Cook went to comfort the children.
• Jon asked his father if they were going to die. He tried to assure him that they would succeed in their efforts.
• Jon told him if they could be together they were not afraid of death.
• Listening to the words of the child Gordon regained courage
• . His determination to fight the storm became stronger.
• The following day the Wavewalker had overcome the storm.
• The wind had eased. Hopes of survival were revived.

^^3) Describe the shifts in the narration of the events as indicated in the three sections of the text. Give a subtitle to each section.^^

Ans

(1) Planning the voyage:

• Gordon Cook had taken his inspiration of round the world voyage from captain James Cook who had completed this feat 200 years before.
• To fulfil his dream Gordon had spent 16 years on sharpening his seafaring skills.
• He had built a wooden boat, 'Wavewalker', which was 23 metres, weighing 30 tons. He had spent months fitting and testing it in the roughest weather they could find.
• They had planned a voyage which would last 3 years and cover a distance of 2,55,000 kilometres.

(2) The Christmas tree:

• Gordon Cook, along with his family and two crewmen set sail in July 1976 from Plymouth, England.
• The first part of the journey passed pleasantly. They had saileddown to Cape Town.
• They were now entering the roughest sea. It was southern Indian Ocean. Strong winds began to blow.
• On December 25, 1976 they were 3500 km east of Cape Town. Though the weather was bad, they had a Christmas tree and celebrated Christmas in a wonderful way.

(3) The storm:

• On January 2, 1977 there were huge waves.
• They could put up only a small sail in front of their ship.
• They secured everything tightly with ropes. At 6 p.m. a huge wave had hit the boat.
• Gordon Cook was thrown overboard. But his lifeline pulled him back to the boat.
• On the ship the water rushed in everywhere. Pumps had stopped working. More water got accumulated.
• One electric pump was in working order. Gordon Cook had plugged the hole from where the water gushed in.
• There was no response to the radio messages sent by them for help.
• On January 6 the Wavewalker came out of the storm. At 6 p.m. a complete outline of the island ‘Amsterdam' was seen by them.

^^4)What difference did you notice between the reaction of the adults and the children when faced with danger?^^

Ans.

• There were four adults and two children on board.
• After the celebration of the Christmas on the Wavewalker the voyagers were quite happy.
• But their happiness lasted only for a short duration. On January 2 the storm had struck.
• The screaming sound of wind was painful. The adults did not lose their presence of mind.
• In order to slow down the speed they dropped the storm jib. Secured everything tightly with ropes.
• They attached lifelines to their life-rafts. They put on their life skins and life jackets. They did not panic but comforted and supported each other.
• Though Gordon Cook was thrown overboard he struggled for survival. He was on the verge of losing consciousness.
• He felt quite peaceful. His lifeline threw him back on the ship. He had suffered worst injuries.
• Yet he controlled the steering wheel and was ready for the worst.
• The crew men pumped out water to keep the ship afloat.
• When Gordon was taking care of other things his wife Mary, took control of the wheel.
• The children's cabin was flooded but they did hope for the best.
• They told their father that they were alright. Gordon saw that they were terribly injured.

^^5) How does the story suggest that optimism helps to endure ‘the direct stress'?^^

Ans.

• Optimism is a circumstance where we look on the brighter side of everything. An optimistic person keeps himself away from fear of failures.
• To such a person everything is easy to achieve. He deletes the word impossible from his life.
• He always hopes to succeed in whatever he indulges in. The story 'We are not afraid to die' very clearly and boldly prints out this idea.
• He did not give up his mission only because of his endless courage and optimistic view.
• He struggled and fought through the storm with unending courage.
• He was thrown overboard but when he emerged to the surface he saw the ship being almost capsized.
• But nature and good fortune revived his optimism. A wave was about to straighten the ship.
• He held on to the railing which was touching the surface of the water. As the wave hurled her upright he was thrown back into the ship.
• In spite of worst injuries he survived. This he could achieve only because of optimism and tremendous courage.
• Every action Gordon Cook indulged in courage and exposure of the bright side of his was an life.
• To the last letter the story gives evidence of optimism and courage.

^^6) What lessons do we learn from such hazardous experiences when we are face-to-face with death?^^

Ans.

• Gordon Cook, Mary his wife, the children and the crewmembers were aware of the fact that anything could happen during the voyage and would prove disastrous.
• But they were optimistic. They were prepared for the worst.
• Every minute after the storm had struck they experienced the worst, but did not lose hopes.
• They had to survive through all their difficulties and dangers bravely.
• At the first indication of the impending disaster the voyagers took all the necessary precautions.
• They were optimistic. When Gordon was thrown over the ship, with the help of the lifeline he was back on board. In spite of worst injuries his hopes for survival did not die down.
• His determination to face all hazards stood firm.
• From every action of the voyagers we learn that in spite of coming face to face with death one should not lose hopes but strive to pursue your goals couragiousely.
• On asking why she had not reported about her injury, Sue was very bold in answering that she did not want them to be worried.
• While the parents were playing the major role to protect them, the children in no way proved to be a hindrance On the contrary they extended a great moral support to the adults.