I am Brett Lindell, and I am a waterman. I live, love, and yearn to be in the water at all times. When the waves are good, I'm surfing. When the water is clear, I'm diving. When it is none of the above? I'm rowing, fishing, or anything else to get me closer to my ancestral home. I am part of a community that doesn't need recognition or a response to exist. Daily, as I drive down the Seawall here in Galveston, Texas, I see other watermen and waterwomen. They surf on their lunch break, fish on the weekends, sail on the afternoons, and dive when the tide is slack. We call ourselves watermen, but we all would hesitate to ever claim such an honor. Instead, a waterman's (and waterwoman's) purpose is to achieve a certain enlightenment, and to constantly grow closer to and discover more about his or her relationship to the water.
To all mermaids, whales, sea serpents, porpoises, manatees, kraken, sharks, dolphins, eels, skates, suckers, crabs, lobsters, sailors, Marines, watermen, waterwomen, and all other living things of the sea let it be known that we are the keepers of the Solemn Mysteries and Ancient Order of the Deep. Let us hold court in our oceans, seas, rivers, and lakes. By the order of His Royal Majesty King Neptunus Rex, Ruler of the Raging Main, you are hereby declared citizens of Neptune Nation, where Water is Life.
