From Tacoma’s Point Ruston Waterwalk, I’m happily watching the Tahlequah ferry ply back and forth, not always on schedule.

It looks so picturesque, and I’m glad I’m not often on it.

Yes, we now live near the Point Defiance ferry dock. We moved over two years ago. Grief overwhelmed me as I processed leaving — both for the loss of Vashon beauty and friends, and the sadness that Vashon is not what it was. Not as radical. Not as inexpensive. Not as hippie. Not as safe. Not as fun.

And even so, our house — while most spectacular — required way more work than we could easily give it during our “golden years.” Soundcliff has a private road (which needs constant maintenance), a private water system, a cliff slowly sloughing into the Sound, and a de-watering system to keep the cliff and road intact.

Our garden was anything but level, and it required lots of work. Gordon announced in 2021 that he had no interest in maintaining the garden at the level we had. After two slippery engagements with garden gravity, it became essential to move on.

The vision of moving motivated us to look at possible places to live — perhaps in condominiums or apartments, where we would have little responsibility for maintenance. While we didn’t seem like condo people, we loved staying with my mother Helen at her Minneapolis condo during her 14 years there from 2003-2017.

We looked at Seattle, but found more excitement and better prices in Tacoma. Tacoma is the new Seattle.

So, we left our beloved Soundcliff in February 2023. We bought a condominium on the 8th floor of the “Rainier Condominiums” in Point Ruston. We’re calling it “Huitieme Ciel (HC),” since we endeavor to make it an Eighth Heaven.

In some ways it’s a drab shoebox compared to Soundcliff, but we’re figuring out how to make it a cozy vibrant home. Resonant with Soundcliff, it has a wonderful view of “our mountain,” Tahoma, and it will hopefully become a launching pad for many adventures to come.

Our house on Vashon became a palette for our own artistic expressions, and those of many friends. It was just getting more difficult and expensive for all of us on the island, especially as we aged. The Community Care Center closed down. Most of us could never afford our Vashon houses today.

While Vashon — compared to Seattle or Tacoma — has changed relatively little, it’s still becoming bougie. Gated houses? Indoor swimming pools? When I moved to the island, lots of people were squatting in former resort cabins, especially at Lisabeula. The old dance hall there was still on the dock, if in tatters. There was a sense that we were living in a place out of place, a time out of time.

Vashon was the blue-collar island. We all said, “May there never be a bridge.” (Except youth.) Most people didn’t lock their houses.

There’s always been a dark side to the Island, despite our green and progressive culture. But compared to other communities, Vashon is Love-on-Parade. Usually.

For whatever reason, it’s less easy to get any service folks to come to Vashon today. “No, we don’t fix plumbing on Vashon unless you pay $190 minimum.”

Then there are the ferries. Once the pride of Washington State, they’ve become sickeningly unreliable. Road maps show that they’re part of the highway system, but nobody would accept roads as dysfunctional as the ferries often are since COVID.

And on top of that, many of my friends are dying. Most recently, I’m mourning loss of Harris Levinson and Gordon Tribble. When my friend Phil Cushman, an extraordinary human and accomplished psychologist, died in 2022, hit-and-run by a young man I once mentored, I fell into a deep depression. How could one of the smartest men on Vashon be killed by a person I once viewed as one of the most promising young people?

As they say, s**t happens. Even in paradise.

I hear crime is worse in Tacoma. But thank Goddess, we’re only a short ferry ride away from your enchanted island.

What I miss most about Vashon? The people, and the fact that you can pee anywhere.

Stephen Silha is a writer, filmmaker, and communications consultant. His new address is 4907 Main Street #818, Tacoma, WA 98407.