One of the great pleasures of my annual family gathering is waking up at my typical too-early hour and finding my cousin Kathleen already awake, the coffee bubbling in the pot. I pour myself a cup, join her on the couch, and we spend the morning catching up in whispers as the rest of the household sleeps. This morning she offered to go find a swim with me and so we took our conversation and coffee into the car and headed down the 15 toward San Diego. 

Our destination was Kellogg Beach in Point Loma, a place Colleen told me about where I wouldn’t have to face my fears of waves. Indeed, we arrived to calm waters, dog walkers, and paddleboarders. 

The water was incredibly warm and clear, though the surrounding boats made me think it might not be exactly clean. No matter; somehow I’ve given up worrying about water quality and I plunged right in without much thought. I swam down to a buoy at the mouth of the bay and figured it might be smart to stop there because several big ships were anchored beyond. Instead of going further, I did a couple of laps between buoys. 

It was a relaxing, beautiful swim. At one point I was even, surreally, surrounded by the sounds of a military band. It turns out I was near the military base and every morning they perform the morning colors, where they raise the flag and play the national anthem.