Gift of direction

Photo from the Dalvey Depot

When a good friend of mine got married a year ago, I was in need of a great gift for her and her husband-to-be. Since I waited longer than I should have to buy a present (typical), all the good stuff was already purchased from the registry. Because of this, and since an old, close friend deserved something a bit more creative than a sausage attachment for her KitchenAid mixer anyway, I had to come up with something thoughtful but off-registry.

Being that the couple are both sailors and plan to travel the world on their vintage sailboat one day, B and I decided to get them one of these gorgeous old-fashioned, classic-style compasses. I think it's really beautiful, and we were even able to get the back engraved with a sentiment from Sea-Fever, the famous poem by John Masefield. I thought the line quite applicable (yes, this line was quoted in Willy Wonka and Star Trek, whatever) for the couple, the occasion and the compass. I won't include the entire personal message we had inscribed for them, but the following is the opening bit, which included a line from the poem:

May you have "a tall ship and a start to steer her by" and may your winds always be favorable...

This compass would be a great gift for a wedding, a new graduate or even Father's Day (obviously with a different inscription). Perhaps I'll get one for B so we don't get lost every time we have to drive somewhere. ;)