2021 Life Logs, Day 188: Eight Years Ago Today
Date: Wednesday, July 7, 2021
Weather: Sunny; High 84, Low 66 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
Mark Daniel Handley was born on July 7, 1942. I met Mark in his 31st year on this earth, and within hours of meeting, we both knew we had met our true soulmate for life. And what a wonderful life we had together.
01 Captain Graybeard Sails to Treasure Island
02 Three Little Pirates Playing the Role to the Hilt
05 Justin and Coco
13 Justin Gets into the Act
20 Digging for Treasure
Since losing Mark to cancer in 2016, I spend every July 7th reflecting on my life with him. The one memory that always stands out as the greatest was his birthday celebration in 2013. It was the only birthday he spent with all five of his grandchildren. Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco were visiting from Puerto Rico and the adult ‘children’ planned a pirate birthday for Captain Graybeard. We decorated Windbird in pirate flags and left Woods Hole for Tarpaulin Cove in the Elizabeth Islands. Jo planned a pirate treasure hunt on Naushon Island with official looking pirate maps. Ollie and Coco were only a year old, but the three oldest grandchildren really got into their pirate roles.
38 Captain Graybeard with His Best Crew Members–Jonah, Ziggy, and Sam
They even made a pirate map birthday cake. After Mark’s death, all of us returned his ashes to the waters of Tarpaulin Cove. All of us will be forever linked to that physical location and all of us will forever be Captain Graybeard’s pirates on July 7th. Happy Birthday, Mark!
