By Hanne Baltzer

In the skipper's private cabin hangs a picture with the embroidered text: "The Lord is mighty above the waves of the sea." It was sewn by his grandmother and hung on his grandfather's ship, his father's ship and now on 55-year-old Jens Nørgaard Nielsen's ship, because it is a fundamental truth for him. Jens is the third generation behind the helm of Denmark's smallest coaster, Saturn, which sails under the Danish flag and transports various goods from port to port in Northern Europe.

Fast goods are Bibles in different languages that are used daily when the four-man crew reads the same play. They each have a Bible in their native language. During the holidays, they read Bible texts about Christmas and Easter, for example, but recently one of the sailors suggested that they start from scratch in the Bible. So now they're making their way through the world's best-selling book. 1 chapter every day.

"We rarely talk about what we read. Besides, it's voluntary to join. Over time, not everyone has wanted to, but for the most part, my crew wants to do well. I don't want to pull anything over their heads. Nothing good would come of that," says Jens.

He has taken the time to talk about values and beliefs. About faith, before work calls again.

Inspiration for everyday life

For Jens er det vigtigt at være kristen hver dag og ikke kun i kirken: ”Jeg er den, jeg er. Man kan ikke leve på andres tro, men må selv tage stilling, og det har jeg så gjort. Mit kristenliv er ikke begrænset eller hemmeligt. Jesus har frelst os, og vil jeg gerne dele med min besætning, for det gælder for alle. Vi har alle brug for tilgivelse. For mig er Biblen en instruktionsbog til livet. Den er skrevet til alle mennesker jorden rundt. Gud inspirerer os, fordi vi kan læse om grundsandheder, fx hvad der er godt for os.  Nøglen til det evige liv ligger i Biblen. Og man ville da være super egoist, hvis man holdt den viden for sig selv.”

The skipper calls life on board simple: "We work, eat, sleep and sail. When we have free time, I watch films or TV, but I often listen to sermons or church services online. It's really good with streamed services. My wife also sends me things from church. For example, I particularly like to follow Open Church in Herning. They have relevant sermons and you can feel that they talk about experiences from their own lives. There's also good worship that I enjoy listening to. "

Crew is worth its weight in gold

Saturn has long since been paid off, the skipper's decision is to sail 200 days a year and only with something that pays off. From mid-December to mid-January, everyone takes time off to get home for Christmas. In many ways, you could say that it's the desire that drives the work. Jens has been a skipper for 30 years. He has three employees: a Filipino who has been with him for 18 years, a Pole with 8 years' service and a Russian who has been sailing for Jens for 6 years. He also has a couple of replacements who can step in when the others want to go home extraordinarily. Before the financial crisis in 2008, there were two crews on Saturn, but now there is one. As Jens says, the bottom line is about the same size as before because there are also fewer expenses.

"The crew knows that I'm the skipper, but we're more like a family who know each other's good and bad sides. We also know what we should avoid discussing. This is probably because we've sailed together for so many years. There is no hierarchy here, which others may experience at sea. I also value each individual very highly and regard them as equals. Every person has the same high value."

"We regularly agree on what maintenance and other things we need to do on board. And then we get started. The crew works independently. Even when I'm not here. They are stable and worth their weight in gold because they can do everything. We renovate pretty much everything ourselves. It's almost only when the ship needs to be painted under the bottom that others are involved. Every month they get a fixed payment on top of their salary of 100 overtime hours, so maybe the salary is also motivating," he says thoughtfully.

Own ship bite by bite

Tilbage i 1989 købte Jens den første bid Saturn af sin far, da han blev færdig som skibsfører fra Den københavnske Navigationsskole. Sammen sejlede de nogle år med far som skipper og Jens som styrmand, mens Jens bankede en del af gælden af. Hans kone Birgitte var også med ombord af og til, men da de fik børnene, gik hun i land for at passe hjemmefronten.  Han kalder deres ægteskab for teamwork, og kan lide fordelingen med, at han arbejder og Birgitte nu i nogle år har haft et stort hjerte for flygtninge, som hun hjælper løbende. Fx bor der af og til nogle hos dem privat.

At the age of 70, Jens' father retired in 2002, and Jens bought the rest of the ship and took over the helm.

"I never know when I'm where. That's probably the biggest challenge of sailing. But I've always sailed. That's how it feels. Maybe because all summer holidays were spent on board my dad's ship, for example. I wasn't very old before I knew I wanted to be a skipper too," he smiles with a twinkle in his eye.

Like most people, he has experienced that times have changed and that the freight market today is under more pressure than before. However, neither grain and animal feed nor stone and gravel have been loaded onto the boat. It has only been used for general cargo, which Saturn has sailed all over Europe with.

Navigation in detail

On this day, the cargo is filled with transformers that Saturn picked up in Rotterdam. The transport of heavy goods by sea is routinely handled meticulously and punctually. Jens is preparing to unload one of the two transformers weighing 120 tonnes and 290 tonnes here at Hvide Sande Harbour. One of the transformers must be lifted from Saturn onto a 72-wheel block lorry. As the 120 tonnes are lifted, the Saturn lifts slightly. With tension, the lift is followed with great accuracy until the transformer is on the block lorry. The other general cargo must be transported to

Finland.   
When asked how long he will continue to sail, he says:
"The ship gets off with me or I get off with the ship! Within a four-year period, there will be new regulations on ballast cleaning systems, for example, which means a very large investment. I don't know, and I want to get involved. But as long as I think it makes sense to sail, I'll do it. I like what I do." 

Hole in the heart

De fleste mennesker møder udfordringer løbende i deres liv. Det gør Jens også: ”Jeg øver mig i at få livet ti at hænge godt sammen, men det er en kæmpe kraft, som Jesus giver videre til os. Jeg går aldrig alene.  Jeg tror, vi alle sammen har et hul i hjertet, som kun Gud kan fylde ud. Og han lover, at han vil være med os alle dage. Derfor føler jeg mig aldrig forladt, fordi Jesus er med i båden. Godt nok har vi ingen garanti for, at der ikke sker noget, men jeg føler mig omsluttet af tryghed og kærlighed. Jeg er ikke bange for at være ude på havet, for det er det job, jeg føler mig kaldet til.”

The smell is starting to waft from the galley, where today the Filipino is in charge of the pots and pans. And after dinner, the sailors read a passage from the Bible again before setting sail for Finland. The navigation is in place and the wind blows gently from the west. 

Details about Saturn
Main engine: MWM TRH435SU from 1966. It is 405 Kw.
Saturn is 54 metres long and just over 9 metres wide.