Saying Goodbye
I loaded the car with all the supplies that we had removed for sailing season: the extra screws and other hardware; the wires, connectors, and fuses; the extra bilge pump and paint. I drove over to the marina, pulled down a cart, and loaded everything in. I wheeled over to her slip.
The breeze was bright that day. The temperature was good. She was straining at the lines, ready to take me sailing. I explained that I was only there to drop off supplies; there would be no sailing that day. She eventually settled down as I tightened the lines to make it easier to load everything.
I talked to her as I moved everything aft, so as to be out of the way. She had a new owner. The new owner loved her now, and would to love her even more as she sailed her. I was just dropping off supplies that day. But I’d be back for a couple of last minute repairs. And I’d be helping sail her down to her new home.
She rocked as I left, saying goodbye to me.
The next day, I came back. I was meeting Paul there to put in a new gauge that would better show the state of the engine batteries. It was raining miserably. I thought I’d plugged all the leaks; the bilge pump hadn’t need to run much lately. But that day, a couple of new leaks appeared. Was she crying?
This evening, I finished the gauge installation. I straightened up all the materials again. I had the title with me to mail off to the new owner, along with some receipts I’d found for work done on her and a couple of books to help the new owner with learning to handle her new boat. She had sent me a cashier’s check for the balance. I was still going to wait until it cleared to mail off the title. But then I thought, “that’s silly! I just don’t want to admit that she’s sold and that she’s now owned by someone else.”
I stopped by the post office and mailed the title.
This is just au revoire and not goodbye, since I will be helping to take her down to North Carolina, part of the way, if not all. But still it’s sad. It’s like leaving a good friend that you may not see again. There is a loss to make it through. Hopefully, by the time we say our final farewells, it will be better.