The ferry from Cedar Island, NC, to Ocracoke, NC, turned out to be an undocumented feature in Google Maps. That is, what looked like a road SR-12 across the bay, was not. In fact, I arrived at the ferry terminal just 30 minutes after the last ferry of the day departed. This resulted in me being separated from the comfort of my hotel room a mere 28 miles away. Thanks Google. Then again, I need to learn how to absorb such setbacks in stride. Honestly, I don't have to be anywhere immediately, so perhaps this was a teachable moment, for me, with myself. So, overnight (when I do my best thinking), it occurred to me it might be a nice, unique place to lay more of Tracy to rest: at sea. And so it has come to pass. Over the bow, she went, in a plume of ashy dust, barely there a second before the thrashing breezes ripped apart what had been as one almost 60 years, gone. My brother asked me last night what all these musings are about. I had to confess I didn't know. What I didn't know at the time I said it was that I don't know that same thing in every scale, large and small. I'm fractally uncertain. That is, except for one thing I know for sure: she is gone, and there's no getting her back.
Tracy being gone is often a stab to my heart, usually when I least expect it. I can only imagine how often your heart has been pierced. I hope this trip has helped you mourn.
Bob, I hope your memories of Tracy, her inherent and ineffable beauty, and the places where you will now always mix her beauty with the glory of nature continue to give you purpose. Musing should be cathartic.