"What words could I possibly use to convey to women to give away their love, not their souls?"
- Mary Ann Patten in The Widow's Walk
Painting by Christopher S. Duncklee
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FADE IN: In a colorless sea, a lone wave surges and rams the bow of a mammoth clipper ship… water spills over the ship’s sharply tilted deck. From bow to stern, SAILORS clad in soaked oilskin suits scurry up the ratlines in a driving sleet. Aloft, more SAILORS cling to ice-coated yards and rigging. The Captain’s orders to the sailors are SHOUTED through a speaking trumpet from the quarter deck, barely discernible over the wind. The speaking trumpet is lowered and we SEE a commanding figure in an oilskin hat. Underneath the hat is the face of a woman, MARY ANN PATTEN; a woman foraging in a man’s world, a woman surging herself. |
Mary Ann Brown Patten
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INT. BROWN'S PARLOR - EVENING
MRS. DAVIS
I come as a spokesperson for women all over New England, if not the country, who would be honored if you would lecture on behalf of woman's rights. Your experiences could be quite inspirational and encouraging to women everywhere.
MARY
I appreciate your offer, but my husband demands all my attention. Soon, so will my child. I must decline.
MRS. DAVIS
Mary, I'd understand if you don't wish to talk about it, but you may be forthright with me. Is that the only reason?
Mary stands. She walks to the open window and faces the sea.
MARY
Mrs. Davis, in my first voyage, despite traveling the world and learning the science of navigation, inside, I was still a frail, scared little girl. Even reading the most profound books and traveling to foreign and glamorous lands could not bring me to myself. But, on this last voyage... I met the wind - one on one. It's a most formidable teacher.
Mary turns back to face Mrs. Davis.
MARY
My only advice to another woman would be to go meet the wind in her own way, and then follow it. It bears the voice of her own God, and if she would only listen, it will tell her everything she needs to know. More than I ever could.
MRS. DAVIS
I come as a spokesperson for women all over New England, if not the country, who would be honored if you would lecture on behalf of woman's rights. Your experiences could be quite inspirational and encouraging to women everywhere.
MARY
I appreciate your offer, but my husband demands all my attention. Soon, so will my child. I must decline.
MRS. DAVIS
Mary, I'd understand if you don't wish to talk about it, but you may be forthright with me. Is that the only reason?
Mary stands. She walks to the open window and faces the sea.
MARY
Mrs. Davis, in my first voyage, despite traveling the world and learning the science of navigation, inside, I was still a frail, scared little girl. Even reading the most profound books and traveling to foreign and glamorous lands could not bring me to myself. But, on this last voyage... I met the wind - one on one. It's a most formidable teacher.
Mary turns back to face Mrs. Davis.
MARY
My only advice to another woman would be to go meet the wind in her own way, and then follow it. It bears the voice of her own God, and if she would only listen, it will tell her everything she needs to know. More than I ever could.
MRS. DAVIS
Those are the words of an inspirational speaker, Mary. There are so many hearts you could reach.
MARY
Be that as it may, Mrs. Davis, it's not in my heart to entertain the curious, or to encourage the uncertain. I've no intention of glorifying my experiences only to be misunderstood. Living on the open ocean for months gives one a perspective, on time, and patience.
Mrs. Davis slowly rises and walks over to Mary. She places her hand on her arm.
MRS. DAVIS
As does comforting a dying husband.
Mary does not take her gaze away from the ocean. She sighs.
MARY
Once my impatience felt like my greatest enemy...
Mrs. Davis silently, softly encourages Mary to continue. Mary straightens and reverses to face Mrs. Davis.
MARY (CONT'D)
... until out on the endless ocean I learned it was never impatience, but doubt that I battled, doubt of myself. And when I lived the life of a woman in charge, a leader - of men even - able to affect my own life, without first asking permission from a man, soon my doubt, and subsequently my impatience, diminished.
Those are the words of an inspirational speaker, Mary. There are so many hearts you could reach.
MARY
Be that as it may, Mrs. Davis, it's not in my heart to entertain the curious, or to encourage the uncertain. I've no intention of glorifying my experiences only to be misunderstood. Living on the open ocean for months gives one a perspective, on time, and patience.
Mrs. Davis slowly rises and walks over to Mary. She places her hand on her arm.
MRS. DAVIS
As does comforting a dying husband.
Mary does not take her gaze away from the ocean. She sighs.
MARY
Once my impatience felt like my greatest enemy...
Mrs. Davis silently, softly encourages Mary to continue. Mary straightens and reverses to face Mrs. Davis.
MARY (CONT'D)
... until out on the endless ocean I learned it was never impatience, but doubt that I battled, doubt of myself. And when I lived the life of a woman in charge, a leader - of men even - able to affect my own life, without first asking permission from a man, soon my doubt, and subsequently my impatience, diminished.
MRS. DAVIS
Mary Patten, you're a woman ahead of your time.
MARY
So then Mrs. Davis, what words could I possibly use to convey to women to give away their love, not their souls?
Mary Patten, you're a woman ahead of your time.
MARY
So then Mrs. Davis, what words could I possibly use to convey to women to give away their love, not their souls?
Boston's Mary Ann Patten was an American heroine every girl and young woman should know about, but few do. To this day, maritime experts assert that what Mary Patten did is next to impossible...
In the late 1990’s, Captain Charles Quinlan, a sea Captain from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, sought to build a replica of an American designed Clipper ship in East Boston, planning to use Mary’s speech to the crew that convinced them she could take command as part of an exhibit at the museum. More Clippers were built in Massachusetts than any other state, with the fastest – the Flying Cloud -- built by Donald McKay in East Boston. The Flying Cloud sailed from New York to San Francisco, traveling around Cape Horn, in a record breaking 89 days. With the California gold rush, the ships being built in Boston and throughout New England made it possible to travel from the east coast to the west coast in record time, bringing goods from all over the world, and helping turn San Francisco from a small fishing village to a thriving metropolis.
Read More...
In the late 1990’s, Captain Charles Quinlan, a sea Captain from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, sought to build a replica of an American designed Clipper ship in East Boston, planning to use Mary’s speech to the crew that convinced them she could take command as part of an exhibit at the museum. More Clippers were built in Massachusetts than any other state, with the fastest – the Flying Cloud -- built by Donald McKay in East Boston. The Flying Cloud sailed from New York to San Francisco, traveling around Cape Horn, in a record breaking 89 days. With the California gold rush, the ships being built in Boston and throughout New England made it possible to travel from the east coast to the west coast in record time, bringing goods from all over the world, and helping turn San Francisco from a small fishing village to a thriving metropolis.
Read More...