July 29, 1996-Leaving

Only a few people were present on that still morning when we pulled out of Seattle to go see the world.

Michael and JoAnne Grey, our neighbors at Shilshole Marina, who own Destiny; and Bill Baum was waiting out the marina entrance in his photo boat to get a shot for the local sailing mag.

And my son Kenneth was there.

That one surprised me.

Ken hadn't said much to me about our leaving. He was sort of casual about the whole thing, so I didn't know he cared much, or even gave it a thought. But there he was that morning, arriving unannounced. He still didn't say much, just gave me a short hug and went back to his car.

I guess he must have stayed there and watched us motor out, because JoAnne told me later she saw him still sitting in the car...with tears in his eyes.

So that was the hardest part of going sailing, it turned out; leaving our family.

Our friends were happy for us, and we were excited to be facing a new adventure, but the kids, who never had much of a dad when they needed him, now were going to have less of one.

It's been hard for me too, being apart from my kids and grandchildren, not being a part of their lives. But I justified it by saying that we didn't see them that much when we were there, and I wasn't going to sit around the rest of my life waiting for them to make some time for grandpa. Still, it's been difficult. Still is.

So I regret this, in a way.

Its funny, the only things I really regret in my life have been the disappointments I brought to my family.

Fred Roswold, SV WINGS