I had the luxury of borrowing Ella, Ammen and Steph's little screaming angel, while they went off mountain biking. I had the kid on my back and Hometeam at my ankles, and we had an outcrop of rock with this heart bending view of Rainier all to ourselves.
I'm writing this post from Juneau, Alaska, alone at a coffee shop, about to step onboard the Endeavour for another few weeks. I'm far away from this trail and the tranquility I found with a little kid sleeping on my back, far away from my dog, from the overwhelming freedom of being home. I'm back to the engine grease and underwater quarters in a crowded room, long hours and calving glaciers and breaching whales and the wonderfully indescribable camaraderie of the crew. My whole heart lifted like a buoy when I walked down the gangplank again, when I saw Meril, when I stood again on the bow on this beautiful sunny day, even more when had a few hours off to run the Flume trail in the mountains in Juneau.
But I still feel very in between worlds. Sailing away on one while anchored to another.
I've said before that whatever I write here becomes true (remember ships and medicine? Be careful what you wish for....) So I'm making it wilder coast official: give me a few more years of enormous adventures- boats, biking, climbing, traveling, ambulances, IVs, search and rescue and writing- and then give me this whole baby-on-my-back dog-at-my-heals life for myself. Okay. Okay? I'm looking forward to it.
