Highbourne Cay was our first real anchorage in the Bahamas, and the moment we dropped the hook it felt like the whole world shifted into something calm and bright. The water was a perfect gin blue, so clear we could look straight down and watch the nurse sharks drifting peacefully under the boat. Everything was so quiet that all we heard was the gentle tapping of the water against the hull and the soft creak of the lines as the boat settled into place.

The very first thing you two did was race to the trampoline and start jumping, your laughter echoing across the anchorage and bouncing back from the water. I could hear the soft thump of your feet on the trampoline mixed with the tiny creaks of the boat, all of it blending into the kind of sound a parent never forgets. It was the day before my birthday, and watching you jump in the sun while the whole bay shimmered around us felt like the best gift I could ever ask for.