I always wanted to be a captain. My father always said, “a wealthy man sells, a poor man buys.”

I went to school. I learned engineering. I married. She’s pregnant.

I’ve designed sixty-three boats. Some were for the Navy, some were for fishermen. Some were for pleasure. This one is for boxes. Six times a year it will sail. It will carry fruits and spices from wondrous lands, I am told. It will be staffed by forty men, I am told. It will make me an even richer man, I am told.

My father is very proud of me. My father says I make him proud, that he can’t believe the fortune I’ve come into. My father marvels at my fine house, at my fine wife. My father talks about me to all his friends. He smiles when he talks. His teeth remind me of clouds. I’ve never seen the ocean, but I’ve seen pictures. I can hear it sometimes, I think.

My wife loves me very much, she says. I believe her, I think.

This boat is different. It’s a little different; it has an extra window, it’s a little bigger. They’ll be cared for.