Need I say more?

26 Nov - I've had some fun while on this voyage to be sure, especially when sailing along with Bill in s/v Galena. On the whole however, it’s been emotionally painful for me to retrace the voyage I made to Florida with Carol in 1997. That is, until I got to Beaufort and connected with my grandchildren. Few know how devastating Carol's death has been for me and even after two years of sailing alone, I'm still as distraught as ever over not being able to share the adventure with her, especially on this trip.

   Being a part of my grandchildren’s lives has given me some peace for the first time since Carol died, so much so that I began entertaining thoughts of wintering here in Beaufort. Once I acknowledged that, my son added that it would take a huge burden off him to know I was here with his family while he is in Iraq again. I’ve given a lot of thought to what is really important to me and as much as I want to cruise, party and drink my way through the Bahamas, I’ve come to feel that it’s even more important to me to be part of my grandchildren’s lives; for them, for my son, but mostly for me.

   So although I may not be a “real cruiser” this year, I know Florida will still be there next year and maybe this soul-searching experience in Beaufort will help make next year’s voyage a lot more enjoyable for me. Right now, the “Papa” role suits me fine and in coming to this decision, I’m reminded of a verse from a poem about boats.

"There is nothing, half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, and that's the charm of it. Whether you get away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive at your destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never get anywhere at all…."

    For me, Beaufort is my "somewhere else."  It's a really nice town with great pubs and restaurants so if you find yourself down this way, come visit me aboard Lastdance at Town Creek Marina. Happy Thanksgiving everyone, see you all in the spring.

Ron