Abby Sunderland Quotes

When I saw the plane, I was absolutely astonished! Two emotions crashed over me: surging joy and crazy fear.

All the ingenuity, all the high-tech gear, all the jury-rigging—sometimes the sea would rip it all away until there was only you, the Creator, and His mercy.

I was so thankful that my parents trusted me enough and had enough faith in my abilities to let me follow my passion and try to do something great, even if I might fail.

I will definitely attempt to sail around the world again. In fact, I can’t wait for the chance to try again.

It seems like people my age are over-protected today, even to the point where a lot of parents refuse to put their kids in the position to make important decisions, to aspire to great things, because they don’t want to put them in a position to fail.

It was dark. Something had fallen on top of the cabin light, turning the cabin into a black tunnel. I couldn’t hear anything at all. The roll didn’t stop. It continued to port, and for just a few seconds I was sitting on the ceiling in the dark.

When a sailor overcomes crushing adversity, there’s a massive sense of accomplishment.

Even without looking I knew: there was no way I still had a mast. And without a mast, the trip was over.

But none of that kept me from picturing what a tsunami might look like if it did rise up and roar toward my little boat like some watery blue version of the Great Wall of China.

Just as I was about to grab the rope ladder, a huge swell lifted the dinghy nearly to La Reunion’s deck level, and at least a dozen smiling French fishermen pulled me aboard.

The critics barged in to harp on every decision we made. . .Sadly, I began to doubt myself. Maybe I was too young. Maybe I wasn’t a good enough sailor.

The swells were amazing! As big as three-story apartment buildings!

The terrifying physics of going up-mast in heavy seas are inescapable.

In that moment it dawned on me that everything has to line up perfectly for something to turn out this awful.

I knew that even if I was able to call for help, I was in a place so remote that it wasn’t likely there would be anyone who could help me. And even if there were, it could take weeks.