Showing Your Colors

On the back of our boat flies a small United States flag.  It is attached to the line that holds the boom level (from the end of the boom to the top of the mast).  It’s called the topping lift.  On the side of the mast is a second flag: British.  It sits high on a line that goes to the spreaders – those wing-like sticks found about two-thirds up the mast.   The US flag at the back designates the country in which the boat is registered.  The British flag indicates the current country where we have permission to sail.  Technically, we should remove that flag each time we come over to St. John, but we don’t and as far as I can tell, no one else seems to do so.

Whenever you enter a new country’s waters, you remove the “current country” flag and replace it with a completely yellow one.  This is the quarantine flag.  It means that you have not yet presented yourself to immigration and customs and everyone except the captain must stay on the boat until he/she goes ashore and takes care of officialdom’s requirements.  Then, you remove the yellow flag and replace it with the flag of the country you have cleared into.

In this place of international sailing, it’s fun to see how many countries you can identify by their flags. 

Some sailors add more flags to their boats.  There are triangular flags called burgees.  Any group of people can create one.  Mostly yacht clubs have their own burgees and so, sailors who are also members of one or more yacht clubs will fly their burgees.   And then there are those who will fly their state flags.  We’ve seen several Texas and Colorado flags on boats.  I’m thinking about bringing New Mexico’s Zia with us next season.  And of course, the vacationers will bring their sports teams flags and fly them wherever they can.  Makes for a colorful sight.

I came across an article about London’s National Maritime Museum, where hundreds of rarely seen sea flags are stored.  The museum’s curator said, “Flags are symbols of national identity, affiliation, pride, and even submission.  After all, when a ship surrendered it raised a white flag.”

Below are a few from this collection:

This ornate Imperial Chinese flag is made from silk and features a winged tiger crafted in gold foil.  The mythical creature with wild green eyes holds flashes of lightning in its claws.  It was taken during the capture of Canton in 1857

A 1920’s version of Britain’s White Ensign flag features the coat of arms of South Africa, Australia and Canada in the quarters, and the Sat of India in the center.  New Zealand is represented by four white stars on the red cross

This skull and crossbones flag appears more fearsome than the reality.  Dating back to 1898, it was the official flag of a British recreational sailing gorup, the Pirate Yacht Club Bridlington

This 1910 flag belongs to Trinity House, the charity responsible for safeguarding Britain’s seafaring community and managing its lighthouses

This motto “hope on hope ever” was designed by maritime historian John Barrow; it is embroidered in silk and dates back to the 1850s

In 1837, Britain’s General Post Office employed a steam boat to collect mail from sailing vessels detained in the entrance to the English Channel by weather conditions

One other bit of history to note:  during wartime it was common practice to hoist the flag of the enemy, only to run up your own colors just before firing.  You could sail your warship toward the other vessel and then, after switching flags, fire at close range.  The common phrase “to show one’s true colors” comes from this bit of deception.  Today it’s much harder to hide your naval boat's identity, given the electronic communication systems that are now aboard.

But…

I wonder about that phrase when it comes to US politics these days.  How often can the turmoil in Congress be traced to the deceptive tactic of hiding one’s true identity until the last minute, before lobbing some political bomb, condemning a proposal or the proposer.  We leave the impression of possible alliances only to have them foiled because we won’t show our true colors.  It’s easy to pick on politicians.  I suspect any political decision in any part of  life (a decision built around power  and winning and losing) is subject to flying a flag other than your own.  Even in the church…  We only foul our own bed and make a mess of  things.

What are our true colors?  How would we fly them?  How colorful might they be?
So, one last bit of fun… What would “Azure Wind” look like in nautical flags?

Fair Winds

Calm Seas

Dave

The sail, the play of its pulse so like our own lives: so thin and yet so full of life, so noiseless when it labors hardest, so noisy and impatient when least effective.      -- Henry David Thoreau