When Terrible Storms Are Forecast by bertolt brecht
In a very old book about the fishing peoples of the Lafotes, I read: when terrible storms are forecast it never fails that some of those who fish moor their sloops on the beach and make their way on land while others hurriedly launch out to sea.
The sloops, if at all sea-worthy, are more secure out on the open water than upon the beach. Even during terribly large storms, they can be saved on the open Sea with navigational artistry while small storms suffice to smash them up on the beach.
For their owners a difficult life, then, begins.
(1938, from ‘Geschichten’, Suhrkamp 1962. Translation SgB, 7.19.2025