Leaving Behind

I really didn't expect leaving Juneau to be so difficult. I guess I've spent so much of my 20 months living here talking about all the things I don't like about it that I didn't notice all the things I like about it.

As the ferry pulled out of Auke Bay this afternoon I was reduced to tears as my attachment to Juneau suddenly became so clear to me. It may not be the place I want to call home years from now, but even as I hit the road, not certain if or when I'll be back to Juneau, it's the closest thing I have to a home right now, and likely will remain so far at least another year.

I guess for me it's always been about finding people that I'm happy to be around. This is what made me so fond of living in Salt Lake City and now, even though Juneau has horrible weather and such isolation, I feel that the people here have caused this town to grow on me more than Homer ever did. It really hit me today as I was heading out to Auke Bay to catch the ferry just how much I am happy around the people of Juneau. I dropped Shannon off at work and was thinking he'd likely be the last person I know that I'd see before Utah. Between downtown and Auke Bay though I saw no less than 6 people I know. I didn't even get a chance to talk to any of them but somehow it was really comforting just to drive around and see people that I know.

It's going to be tough to come back here in the fall, because of how horrible the weather is at that time, but it's also very likely that I'll be very anxious to return to the community that I feel more a part of than any since adolescence.