Leaving San Diego—A Summary
By Jeannine Patané • August 2004

    I have discovered some things about San Diego; it takes very few material possessions to live here because the weather is always warm and sunny, and the people are always kind enough to give you what you need. It is an easy life. I have worn my flip-flops every day, and some days, I’d just work barefoot around my friend’s house. When I worked on the yacht, I was barefoot all the time. Southern California’s beautiful weather, beaches, harbors, city life and outlying mountains have so much to offer varying lifestyles, no wonder it attracts so many people.
    If this place is so great, then why am I leaving and not planning to return to San Diego for awhile? Mindful comfort is not something I seek at the moment, and I am not ready to relax my time away in such a beautiful place. There is more for me to do and learn on this earth of ours. My senses want to see, smell, hear, taste and touch new things. I need to travel the world by myself in order to get a better understanding of how I could best be helpful for our planet.

"There is science, logic, reason; there is thought verified by experience. And then there is California."
—Edward Abbey

    For now, I’m heading back to New York, where my dad awaits my arrival to help him with house projects. We have my brother’s wedding to prepare for, and many friends and relatives will be stopping by. We want the house to be presentable. As I pack my bags to travel to the East Coast, one object that is included in my luggage is a stunt kite.
    My desire to own a kite was initiated at a beach. A friend was preparing to surf while I entertained myself beachcombing for interesting shells and objects. I noticed a truck on the beach with a man, a dog and a surfboard next to the vehicle. The man took out a kite, prepared the line and then let the kite up in the air. He handled the kite with finesse. I sat in the sand to watch; the sight mesmerized me. I wondered what compelled this surfer to fly a kite for an hour before going out on his board? Was it a way to study the wind and understand what the waves were doing? Was it a way to relax and mentally transition from town to the ocean? Or maybe he just liked flying kites and loved the flow of both wind and water. All I knew was this man and his kite were poetry in motion, and I wanted my own kite to experience these thoughts myself.
    The biggest lesson I learned while flying my kite is I’m not going WITH the flow of wind, but I’m going AGAINST the wind. If my life were placed in the wind, it would be easy for me to just tumble along with it and see where I'd get carried. It would be much more difficult to work my life against the wind, however, it is only when I go against the wind that my kite will rise.

"To fly, we have to have resistance." —Maya Lin

    It is time to pack my flip-flops, stunt kite and other possessions into a suitcase and fly back to my roots. California is a beautiful place with genuinely beautiful, laidback people and I have fond memories of my time spent here, but it’s time I turn around to put the wind at my face instead of my back, so I can continue to learn how to fly higher.