BY CSM STAFF WRITER
Michael Hurley watched his world unravel in the wake of infidelity, divorce and failure. In August 2009, he was short of money, out of a job, and seeking to salvage a life that had foundered. Deeply in need of perspective, he took to the open seas in a 32-foot sailboat, Gypsy Moon. The story of his 2-year outward odyssey, deterred by rough weather and mechanical troubles, combines keen observation, poignant thoughts, and deeper introspection with glorious prose.
His book Once Upon a Gypsy Moon also presents a rare and much-needed point of view on the familiar spiritual-journey narrative. It offers a star-crossed love story wrapped inside a rollicking good sea tale, but it also has something important to say to the reader about relationships, faith and disbelief, life and death, love and marriage, and what really matters.
Michael comments:
I’ve made two Atlantic crossings. The first, east to west, was in 2017, 28 days nonstop with a young lady from Greenwich who’d never set foot on a sailboat before. The second I made alone, in 2020 from New York to Plymouth, in 35 days. Both passages were aboard the Nevermore–a tough-as-nails British sloop built in 1967 that I bought in Essex. These boats were once used as a sail-trainers by the Royal Navy. Everywhere I anchored that boat in the West Indies, some old Brit would come alongside in a dinghy to tell me that he had sailed a Nicholson 32 just like it “back in the day.”
Michael recorded the audio below regards the second voyage. There’s quite a bit in it that is relevant to a UK audience, as Michael gave the speech while he was living in London. If you find it worthwhile, please feel free to share it widely.
About Michael Hurley:
Michael Hurley is an American Catholic, husband, father, and Jesuit-trained trial-attorney who spent 31 years in private practice. He is a third-degree member of the Knights of Columbus and has served parishes in North Carolina and Texas as parish council chairman, CCD instructor, and youth-group director. He is the author of seven books and numerous articles. His writing has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, The Raleigh News & Observer, The Conservative Woman, The Daily Skeptic, and The American Thinker. He has previously written on divorce and remarriage in the Catholic Church in his memoir, Once Upon A Gypsy Moon (Hachette Book Group, 2013).