Testing the Wind

by Peter Ilgenfritz

TESTING THE WIND is the story of one man's journey through transitions, lesson by lesson, one discovery at a time. In stepping off the dock of his familiar life, Peter learns how to trust in the unfolding, opening of life itself, to let go and use the wind to take him out onto the next tide of his life.

158 pages, Paperback

Published April 14, 2021

Reviews

[Larry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a good friend of Peter's and before the book came out I was worried about how careful I would have to be in my reaction to it. I am extremely happy to be able to report that Peter is really a very good writer. The stories he unfolds here, and the way they are woven in and around his experiences learning to sail, work well on many levels. The metaphor of learning to sail and learning to live completely works. The juxtaposition of the narratives adds a level of pleasure to reading the book. The most striking thing about this book is just how human it is. Peter reveals himself in an entirely vulnerable and touching way that puts you into the world he has been navigating. It brings us into a ladder of struggles that lead into each other, informing each other, and shows how each triumph in life sets the groundwork for further, and perhaps more complicated issues. I have not had Peter's struggles but I do know that his honesty spoke to my humanity and pointed ways of being that I can use in my life. Thank you Peter for this wonderful little book.

[Marcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Ilgenfritz has written a rare book of deep vulnerability and determination to discover his true self as well as break barriers as a gay minister. From childhood through college, from Divinity school to ministry he explores with warm eloquence his doubts and confusion along his challenging path. His heartfelt journey in relationships is also shared with compassion and honesty. I was deeply moved and Peter's story opened important questions up for me, of authenticity, aliveness, and courage. All of this fine story is conveyed with his courage to learn to sail and sailing metaphors are the bones of the chapters, creating a delightful double story!

[Carl Woestwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's all summed up on the last page of this engaging memoir: "...a life lived with integrity and told honestly and vulnerably is what matters most." My heart opened to Peter's vulnerability and my mind opened to his bravery in telling this very personal story. I didn't follow the sailing metaphor every time it was used, but it was used effectively often. It's funny to say "how brave you were to show how afraid you were", but that's what I felt, admiration for his speaking all those difficult to say things, and for his drawing me so deeply into his story. Peter is a writer who lets his story unfold gracefully and a minister who isn't preaching to the reader.

[Anne Dooley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the few books written by someone I know that I did not want to end. Peter writes with clarity, intelligence and humor about the stages and transitions in his life, with learning to sail as a skillfully interwoven metaphor. It’s a brave book; Peter shows his vulnerabilities and shares his missteps. It made me want to dig down and do that thing that I’m afraid of, to cast off some old assumptions and not be afraid of change. I hope there will be a sequel.
One missing piece - the lovely watercolor on the cover is by the author. I hope this will be acknowledged in subsequent printings.

[Brittany Durgin · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is so much humanity in this book. I'm glad to know Peter and to know him better through this story.

[Mike Denton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good mix...

This is a story about sailing, and love, and vocation, and vocation, and vocation. It's not a roadmap but a description of processing and living that I enjoyed and felt reassured by.

[Genjo Marinello · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter weaves his journey of learning how to sail, with the courage one needs to humbly face the unpredictable transitions of life. When is the best time to shove off? What will be our next port? Do we have sufficient skills to make this leg of the journey? If not where can we learn them? In reading, “Testing the Wind” all of us can learn a bit more about how to find our own way.

[John V · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend! Beautifully written with ongoing comparison of learning to sail with life experiences. Makes you look inside yourself and realize we are all the same with our uncertainty and evolving relationships.

[Andrew Arsenault · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this story of Peter’s life viewed through the lens of sailing. Stretching beyond his comfort zone and imaging that he could be happier by daring to learn new things about life, he uses sailing as a metaphor for exploring a new way of living. Highly recommend this book to anyone struggling with how to be happier.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ships and sailing have long been a metaphor for facing life’s challenges, and our language itself is peppered with phrases torn from a sailing journal: “being adrift,” “setting sail,” “facing stormy seas,” etc. Testing the Wind is a new autobiography in these rich currents; a middle-aged man is called to sailing lessons, and finds himself, in a time of transition, learning far more than to read the water and wind and points of sail.

What makes this book fresh and exciting is the author’s honesty and vulnerability. Peter had an ouwardly satisfying life, but something mysterious was calling him, telling him it was time for a change. When any of us get that call, we can sit back and try to ignore it; and life becomes a little smaller as we avoid the fullness of who we really are. As painful as stepping off the dock may be, as fear-inducing as the whitecaps may get, to sail forth is to become more fully alive. It’s in the details of how this plays out in Peter’s life that we recognize how this works in our own. And Peter is a masterful storyteller; his language pulled me into the waters of Puget Sound on a chilly, wind-driven October day, into the warm waters of offshore Florida, as into the stormy waters of a relationship that was ending with transitions to be faced.

I dare say anyone who reads this book through will want to get out on the water for themselves, if not literally then at least testing what transitions may want to be unfolding in their own life. For myself, I can’t wait to get down to the Center for Wooden Boats, with Peter’s history there fresh in mind.

[Kent French · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoughtful, beautiful, vulnerable meditation on what it means to let go so that you can soar forth. Using his experience of sailing as a metaphor for life, Peter helps us understand through his experience how we might trust and learn to harness the winds of life and untether ourselves from the inner monologues and thought patterns that hold us back. A tale of liberation at the most personal level.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autobiography of pastor that bounces back and forth between his life and his sailing lessons. Finds an ethic in sailing that is needed in his personal life to grow, find himself, and have confidence when going into the unknown.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

My book