Tom: "I stayed because I didn't want to leave her again

Tom, Radio picked up the coast guard chatter last night. Storm system building southwest. You'd know what that means for the channel this time of year. I'm still here. Jenny's still here. The generator threw a rod bearing three weeks back — machined a replacement from the old prop shaft. Runs rough but it runs. Garden's mostly kale and potatoes now. She saves seeds like they're gold. She wakes up some nights and doesn't know where she is. I sit with her until the light changes. The week before I shipped out, you said I always leave. You were right. I did. Every time. Then the water took forty minutes of my life and gave it back different. She was on the dock when I walked off that gangway. Didn't ask where I'd been. Just handed me a thermos and said, "Engine's cold. You know what to do." I stayed because I didn't want to leave her again. The shortwave still works. Channel 16, 0600 and 1800. If you hear this — if you're still listening — key the mic once. Your brother, Kevin