Eulogy For Isabel

When I sat down to write this tribute, there were so many things I wanted to tell you all; from each adventure, every smile that was made because of Isabel’s gentleness & generosity, to every laugh and all the times I can possibly remember of her.. Good or bad.
When I had first met Isabel, I was boarding off from sea one sunny winters afternoon. What had caught my attention about her the second I laid eyes on her was her laugh, & the curls of her dark hair swirling in the wind; the first time I realized how beautiful she was.
With the brightest expression, she noticed me smiling at her. I apologized for watching & she said to me “Never be sorry for smiling!” following an offer of some bread to feed the gulls with her. (21-22)
My final duty
(25)
Trying to look attentive while conversing with everyone was a challenge, being distracted by the sight of Isabel in the corner of my eye. (26)
Flashing forward to around the time of my first Christmas on Janus Rock as the lighthouse keeper, a bit of letters were delivered to me; one being from Isabel. (37)
I still remember the excitement & anxiousness of seeing her name. The letter was simply her checking in on me, making sure I had not been blown away or swept out at sea, or even worse.. eaten by a whale. (37-38)
Our first date was her idea… A picnic by the bay in Point Partaguese when my first 6 months on the light were over; almost the last day of the year 1920. (40-41)
From then on, I was surprised by how much I looked forward to seeing Isabel. I enjoyed most listening to her talk about the story of her life in Partaguese growing up, & it’s history.
She wanted to get married. (49)
The first few days of being on the Lights with her, she had explored the entire island with a map; naming everything from the coves & cliffs to the grassy fields.