After Dad died, we siblings, John E, Margaret, and I, agreed that we would put his ashes out to sea together with those of Mom. Nearly nine years later she died and we could fulfill this romantic and symbolic act, joining them with some of the wonders of life which they so loved.
Margaret and I drove out to nearby Half Moon Bay Harbor before 4 p.m. on 28 December 2009, and watched the charter fishing boat, Huli Cat, come in with a load of 11 fisherpeople and 3000 pounds of Humboldt squid. We watched the huge squid, 25-45 pounds each, being unloaded, some of it for scientific research. We learned a lot about these squid, a tropical animal with an abnormally huge population in this area and making its way towards Alaska. Some of the reasons are natural, some may be due to global warming. Their life styles and possible impact on other sea life is being studied by the man we met. The squid isn’t the tastiest of its breed, but is an excellent and plentiful supply of cheap protein. The squid live only 18 months before they reproduce and then die. See Squids4Kids and http://www.reelreports.com/humboldt-squid-below-san-francisco-11508.html where you can see a tiny picture of our captain too. We learned that these squid are great for dissection purposes in high school, even the ganglia are easily visible. Ok, now I am sounding like Mom. Pelicans flew overhead. These were the first of things which we experienced which Mom and Dad would have loved.
The boat was finally washed down and we boarded for our exciting ride out the harbor. After a slow start because crab line was being dropped, we went up to 13 knots and up and over the waves. What a thrill! Dad would have been in his element! We thought our brother JohnE, who could unfortunately not make it today, would have loved this ride too. The boat turned to one side and then the other as it fought its way over those tremendous waves, well, tremendous enough for a calm day! Hold on tight!!! One of the crew of two chatted with us to keep us distracted, sort of! This was not a ride for little ones, and most people would have had to hold on to the side, wondering if the next crash and roll would take them with it. Soon, however, we were past the breakers and could bring out the camera again.
The timing of our somewhat belated trip was perfect! The lighting, the weather, the rainbow, the sunset – how symbolic, the seals resting on the buoys, the waves and their rooster tails near Maverick’s Point, even the surfers out there catching waves. By five o’clock we had reached the sea across from the tide pools at Moss Beach Mom so loved. And there we idled.
The chatty crew member cut open the plastic bags containing the powdery ashes of our parents. He told Margaret how to dump them overboard and I photographed. They entered the sea so quickly from the bag, but we watched them as they floated upon the water a while longer, drifting away.. Margaret poured some Big House Red into the sea as a libation, to toast the physical remains of Mom and Dad as they joined with the sea. Then Margaret took a box of Mom’s sea shells and drift wood collection and tossed them gradually back into the sea. Will I find the driftwood swan on the beach in a few days?
The skipper gunned the engines and twenty minutes later we were back in the slip as the moon rose over the harbor, the return ride over the waves more harmonious than the ride out. We joined Chris and Carlos in a harbor restaurant for dinner, the kind of place Dad would have felt comfortable in, especially with the good beer to quench his thirst.
Adios, Mom and Dad!
Anne C. Ruecker
