“Life is short”: Kamloops family looks back on yearlong sail around the world

KAMLOOPS — “Life is short. It’s not just a cliché and you never know what’s coming next. We just decided, we have this dream, let’s actually do it,” said Jamie Chase.

Merdeka (image credit – Chase Family)

Travelling the world. For most people it’s a thought, an idea, a pipe dream; for the Chase family, the past year was a dream realized as they traveled the world aboard their sailboat, the Merdeka.

“People ask us, ‘What was your favourite place?’ And it’s impossible to answer that. Everywhere was so different, for different reasons. Sometimes, it was about the amazing topography of the island or country we were in. Some places, it was about the people, who were fantastic. Other places the snorkeling or marine life was incredible,” said Jamie.

(image credit – Chase Family)

“Just thinking about it now, there is a lot of emotion because we did it, and the four of us did it together. To do that with your family… I was so proud of our kids, so proud of Jamie. He was our captain, he was responsible for all of us, for the boat, and he got us across safely,” added Dina.

It was a family affair for the Chases, with Jamie and Dina’s daughters Aria and Gabrielle joining in the expedition, and taking learning abroad to a whole new level.

“We did a lot of history. When we went to France we went to Versailles, so we got to see lots about the French Revolution. We got to learn it because we were right there. It was pretty neat,” said Gabrielle.

While Jamie struggled to narrow down an individual memory, Dina remembered the moment the family sailed into Antigua.

“We come into Falmouth Harbour and I don’t know why, it was actually quite spiritual. There were these spinner dolphins greeting us, they were leaping in the air, and spinning around. And we were just incredulous. We hadn’t seen a lot of dolphins on the crossing (of the Atlantic), and so all of a sudden there are dolphins just bringing us into the harbour,” said Dina.

Aside from bumping into a human skull in the catacombs below Paris, for the eldest, Aria, she will forever remember a moment alone in the middle of the Atlantic.

(image credit – Chase family)

“The waves sort of calmed down, the the sky opened up and it was just these bright amazing stars, and the wind was smooth — it was amazing. Just being out there was so cool,” reminisced Aria.

It was a lifetime of memories, created in just one year, together as family.

“Experiencing this together as a family was one of the goals of the whole trip, to do something like this with the four of us. We had been planning this trip for 10 years now and saving up for it, talking about it. The kids were toddlers when we really started thinking, ‘let’s do this,’” said Jamie.

“What becomes essential in your life and what become the things that you focus on, completely change when you’re living abroad — not just travelling but living abroad. I wish that everybody could experience that,” added Dina.

There is always planning for the next great Chase adventure, but for now back in Kamloops, Aria and Gabrielle are preparing for high school, while Dina resumes teaching, and Jamie jumps back into action with Kamloops Fire Rescue.

“We are getting there, getting back into life here. But it just gives you such an appreciation for the things that are amazing for home when you travel like that,” said Jamie.

(image credit – Chase Family)