Saying "Goodbye" is never easy.

Yet, for each of us, that time may come.

Might there be an actual ship to carry us to a new land?

Or is this just a warm and lovely dream?

Tolkien's poem below is, among other things

A beautiful metaphor for living on, and on, and on.

A search for this title on Amazon.Com reveals

A forty page book, centered on this universal theme.

In "Return of the King", a movie recently released, there

Are marvelous depictions of the "Grey Havens".

Below are more comments about this idea,

Interspersed with photographs of a

Picture puzzle version

There have always been such dreams.

People have always hoped that those who "sailed away"

Would reach another life.

If not for that hope,

For over three decades,

 The two of us have dreamed that dream, together,

We have long imagined that such a ship, seaworthy, might actually be built.

Three times, so far, we have done what we could, to help build one,

Yet  this kind of development is still in its earliest stages.

The sea calls to us more strongly, as we grow older.

Ships are under construction.

There are vast distances to sail,

Many storms to weather, much to learn of navigation,

If we are to cross those awesome seas of time,

To reach havens "fair and free".

Some ships have already been "lost at sea".

Others have turned back, lacking the courage to continue.

Some passengers from these are now embarked on other ships.

Crews continue to change, yet their ships are barely at the mouth of the harbor.

 Welcome to on-line archives

Of an earlier day.

May they be of help to those

Who continue to design and try to build

Seaworthy ships with which to sail the seas of time.