This morning I left Kodiak after a quick 6-day visit. The longer I’m gone from my old home, the fewer people I feel the urge to see when I’m there. My time on the island increasingly simplifies. I arrive, I wander around the family home. My little explodes with joy at the time with his cousin. I drink too many ciders.

This trip was made beautiful by the presence of BW. There was new magic in showing him the things of my past. There was also new magic in shaping the contours of a shared future. I was deeply moved to see him building a relationship with A, and to see A take his hand on the beach — a simple reflex that carries so much more meaning and potential to the adults who receive it.

We are taking off now, on our way east. More family and more love ahead.