Somos El Barco

By Craig Wiesner - San Mateo Daily Journal - October 2026

Somos el barco, somos el mar. Yo navego en ti, tú navegas en mí

We are the boat, we are the sea. I sail in you, you sail in me 

The lyrics to one of my favorite Pete Seeger covers, “We Are the Boat,” popped into my mind recently as I watched motivational author Glennon Doyle encouraging people to “pick a boat and get on it,” urging them to choose an issue that moves them and do something, anything, about it. Progressives are often referred to as “the resistance,” but she opined that conservatives, or MAGA, are the ones resisting the world we are trying to build. “The river of justice, and love, and equality, and shared humanity has been flowing since the beginning of time, and can not be stopped, and will not be stopped. THEY are the resistance. We are the river. What we have to do now is get our asses in the river.” 

She talked about a fleet of boats on that river, with people working on all kinds of issues. Instead of griping about some boats working on issues we don’t care about or disagree with, we just need to get on a boat and work. Today that rings so true as I look at Indivisible meetings. There’s a table of people working on immigration, another on LGBTQIA+ rights, another on voting rights, another on disability rights, another on criminal justice reform, another on climate, another on healthcare, and another and another and another. And there are people offering homemade cupcakes, pouring lemonade, with others scurrying around setting up those tables and chairs… a boat for everyone, even introverts like me.

35 years ago, when my husband and I spent our volunteer time working on LGBTQ+ rights, an environmental activist took us aside and praised our speaking, organizing, and technology talents but said they were being wasted. He wanted us to join his climate efforts, saying “Gay rights will come in time, but there may not be a planet left to live on.” I was hurt by that. I believed then, and believe now, that if each of us works on issues we care about, and if we are supportive of other people working on other issues, we can all make progress. Glennon Doyle echoed that in her talk, and I’m gratified to see progressive organizations encouraging each person to work on what they feel uniquely called to do, while cheering each other on. We also have to recognize that many people are barely keeping their heads above water, juggling work and family, and may not be able to jump on any boat!

The first time a “river” became a powerful metaphor for me was when my husband and I were in Comunidad Octavio Ortiz in El Salvador attending a gathering of La Colectiva, the community’s governing body. They were learning about organizing using a method known as “popular education.” The presenter used a large drawing of a river to show how this community could work to get the Salvadoran central government to change policies that were negatively impacting them. He showed where obstacles and opportunities existed along that river and how to navigate around and take advantage of the natural flow to get things done and, of course, avoid drowning. 

The first time a boat became an important metaphor for me was at a talk by Kevin Danaher, the co-founder of Global Exchange, the organization that changed my husband’s and my life by taking us to Afghanistan after September 11th. Danaher was encouraging activists like us to stop painting the world as a terrible place, filled with awful things happening, dragging everyone down. Instead, he told us, we should act as though we are on one of the most festive cruise ships imaginable, having a great time, dancing, showing people on shore how wonderful the world could be if they got on board. Glennon Doyle echoed that sentiment in her talk, saying that we needed to portray the world we are trying to build in such a compelling and joyful way that anyone standing nearby would want to jump on one of our boats. 

Speaking of being dragged down, though, Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor, in their book, End Times Fascism, write that some powerful people, including tech billionaires, are convinced humanity is on course for cataclysmic collapse. They’re building fortresses, bunkers and fortunes to ride it out and profit from it. They could be right if we don’t band together, get our asses in the river, support each other, and offer the world a brighter future, especially for those people just trying to stay afloat.

Somos el barco, somos el mar. Yo navego en ti, tú navegas en mí. Let's dance and get out the vote!

Craig Wiesner is the co-owner of Reach And Teach, a book, toy and cultural gift shop on San Carlos Avenue in San Carlos. Follow Craig: craigwiesner.bsky.social.