Pat Gallant Charette, of Westbrook, training for her fifth open ocean swim, discovered a message in a bottle floating in the water off Pine Point in Scarborough on Wednesday.

Charette, who will leave on Friday to swim the North Channel in Ireland, said she was swimming when she saw something floating in the water in front of her. It turned out to be a weatherworn wine bottle, corked and sealed with wax, with a rolled-up note inside.

Charette and a group gathered on the beach to read the poignant note, which turned out to be written Aug. 20 by two expecting parents mere days before Charette discovered the bottle.

The letter was written from the parents to their unborn son, their first.

While the names were illegible, Charette said one day she hopes to be able to talk to the first-time parents.

“I’d love to meet them,” she said Wednesday.

The note read as follows:

“To our Baby Bear,

We are finding it very difficult to put into words our hopes and dreams for you. But even harder to imagine the person you will grow up to become. All we can really wish for is that you are born into this world healthy, strong and that we are well enough equipt (sic) to guide you throughout your life in every way you may need us as parents. You are sure to teach us as much about this world as we teach you. We promise to be patient and kind when you hit the many ruff (sic) patches you are sure to have to endure when reaching for your goals; supportive when we may not see eye to eye. Because you will always be our baby boy. There is always something special about a first in life, and you will always be our first child, our first real learning experience, our first priority, and our first reason to want to be the best parents we could ever be. But in the end our biggest wish is that you find all the happiness in your own life, as much as you have brought to ours.

Love always, your parents (unreadable signature)”