The Stranger in the Lifeboat

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Over time, Montserrat quieted considerably. The journalists departed. The
raft was shipped to a Boston laboratory. Leonard Sprague, the police
commissioner, was disappointed that the media attention, while sparking
curiosity, did not increase tourist travel to the island.
The TV reporter Tyler Brewer won an award for his extensive Galaxy
coverage, then went on to other stories. The company that insured the yacht
was forced to pay a large settlement after analysts concluded that the sinking
was caused not by neglect but rather by a mammal attack that broke holes in
the fragile hull and caused a catastrophic explosion in the engine room.
The families of those lost at sea felt a certain closure, knowing the final
resting place of their loved ones. And in the weeks that followed, a few of
those families received unusual correspondence. Alexander Campbell, the
youngest son of Nevin Campbell, got an unsigned letter that stated his
father’s regrets at not spending more time with him. Dev Bhatt, the husband
of Mrs. Latha Laghari, received an envelope with two earrings inside it.
Six months later, Jarty LeFleur and his wife Patrice went to a doctor and
learned that Patrice was pregnant. “Are you serious?” she said, then broke
into tears and grabbed her husband, whose mouth dropped open in happy
astonishment.
And not long after that, a rent-a-car drove to the lookout above Marguerita
Bay, and a man in black jeans and boots walked down to the beach, holding a
tattered notebook. When he spotted a thin man heading his way, they both
started running, yelling each other’s names, until they embraced in a longawaited
reunion.
In the end, there is the sea and the land and the news that happens between
them. To spread that news, we tell each other stories. Sometimes the stories
are about survival. And sometimes those stories, like the presence of the
Lord, are hard to believe. Unless believing is what makes them true.