Welcome back to another bloghop, with #OpenBook. Here’s this week’s prompt.

Don’t forget to click the link to see what everyone else has to say on this week’s subject. It’s at the end of my post.

Setting music aside, describe some of your favourite sounds.

I’m a country boy, so I grew up with the sounds of nature. Wind and rain through the trees, birdsong, cows and sheep in the fields that surrounded our house. A few minutes away was the south coast of Devon, with the sound of waves and seagulls as a backdrop to the day.

They’re as familiar to me as breathing. And they ground me when it all gets too much.

When I travelled the world in merchant ships, I added new sounds: the comforting hum of the ship’s engines, the peculiar singing noise you get when a strong wind whistles through rigging.

Every ship makes its own noises as it moves through the water; you soon get used to it.

The strange thing about being on a ship was that the sudden absence of some sounds, or an unexpected one, would often register instantly, even waking you in the middle of the night, wondering what was going on.

When I was an apprentice and a very junior officer, I often puzzled over how the Captain knew the wind direction had changed, or that the ship was altering course or speed. At any hour, even in the middle of the night.

When I gained more experience, I knew that any alteration in the ambient noise was enough to trigger your senses. In time, it started to happen to me.

When I was piloting on the Thames, the noise of the pilot cutter’s engines starting up was enough to rouse me. Even though I’m long retired, the Brixham Deep-Sea pilot cutter has the same engines, and it often wakes me now.

These days, I can turn over and go back to sleep, knowing that it’s not my turn to climb the ladder.

What do you think about this week’s subject?

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While you’re here, please click the InLinkz link to check out what my fellow writers have to say about this week’s topic.

I’ll be back with another post on Thursday. See you then. Meanwhile, have a great week.

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