I have tried to write this blog post many times. I wrote about our hectic summer, the anxieties of Kara starting school, and how our land life differs from our sea life (laundry and swimming have different importance). None of them conveyed re-entry to me. They were all about stuff and not about the huge change we are living.

Today it hit me. Why did I think re-entry would be easier than cutting the dock lines? Yes, we have more space and the daily things seem easier, but some things are much harder. The big picture isn’t as clear to me. This morning when I walked Kara to school we got to talking about safety in cyberspace. She told me that by law she isn’t allowed an email account. I said that I would trust her to talk with her friends, but I would worry about her talking with strangers. I asked if she could think of some adults she could email. Her first suggestions were Hugh and Anne on Serendipity and Howard and Lynn on Swift Current, our buddy boats, the safe adults. This is what makes re-entry hard. It is never the stuff that hangs me up, it is the people. I miss “my people” - to quote Howard. I miss the caring adults I can call on for anything, whether to see if they still have eggs, can help us unravel the prop from the fishing net (thanks again Serendipity) or a safe place to send Kara for an hour while I screw my head back on tight. I miss the cruisers out there who dinghy up to welcome us to an anchorage, or catch our lines at the dock. I miss the excitement of going to a new place, and the sense of accomplishment from learning a new bus system. I am jealous when I read about friends in far off places. Gato Go turns me a deep green with envy whenever I read their blog, and Bella Star keeps me wishing we had made the right (not left) turn with them. I would love to see the different side of the world where they are living.

That said I don’t miss carrying groceries back to the boat. I love telling Kara I bought Ice Cream. I don’t miss the anxiety of preparing for a passage. I love it when it rains and I have forgotten to close a window - mopping up a puddle on the floor is so much easier than drying our mattress after I forget the front hatch! I love watching Kara get ready for school in the morning, because for the most part she prefers the weeks to the weekends - she loves school that much. After three years of too few kids, she is relishing in too many. I love feeling the fall air - we chased summer for so long that the morning nip and dry air makes me smile.

Our re-entry is on-going. It might have been easier to re-enter in Seattle, where our pre-cruising friends live. But, coming to Sag Harbor has been great for us. We still work as the Taking Flight Crew, doing most everything together. Dave and I walk Kara to school, and pick her up together. We have the best conversations during those 20 minute walks. Dave and I get the list of irritating boys each day, and hear the praises given to Kara’s teacher. Kara is finding many friends, and Dave and I are starting to find new playmates. I know that we will find our Sag Harbor community soon, but I feel lucky to hold our buddy boats in my heart.