A Boat to Japan, a Dream, and Herzog, Flaubert, and Stravinsky

Years ago, I read about a man who died in a small boat while sailing from Japan to the United States.

He had started in the US, arriving in Japan after a long, difficult journey with a precious cargo: The ashes of his wife, who wanted to be buried in her native country. He faithfully carried out her wish, and did so by sea, as the two of them had loved …