B
orn on Nantucket in 1989, Parker Matthew Graham is a member of the next generation of watermen emerging on the island. As a kid, he roamed the town pier, sweeping
the docks, putting in channel markers,
and taking up odd jobs just to be by the ocean. Before long, the Marine and Coastal Resources Department took notice of the young man’s talent and enthusiasm, and gave him a two-year job studying shellfish and invasive crab species. Over the last five years, he has worked with his uncle, Billy, at Brant Point Marine, “doing everything that involves boats.” Parker can surf just about any wave Nantucket’s waters can produce, and he has an intimate understanding and respect for its force. “When you’re sitting out there, you can’t control what’s coming at you,” he says. “All you can do is apply your skill to that particular moment. You are in the now…living second by second.” Beyond the board, Parker has garnered knowledge on the water by helping deliver boats to Nantucket from other far-off islands. As with many watermen, he ranks remaining calm as one of the most important skills for surviving the ocean. “The ocean isn’t trying to kill you,” he says, “it doesn’t even know you are there. If you can keep your heart rate low, you are better able to use your skills to stay out of harm’s way.” When asked about the influences that created his passion for the ocean, Parker doesn’t hesitate to credit the community of Nantucket. Nantucket has long been a land of these tacticians of the sea, passing down skills and stories that culminate in people like Jim Briard, Melanie Kotalac and Parker Graham. The watermen tradition is both earned and inherited—the only requirement is to share it
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with the next generation.
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