The Miracle of the Beach
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
How fortunate I am to live ten minutes away from the beach. We have recently started the after-dinner trip to the beach again. This is something we used to enjoy when we were a family of three, what seems like so many years ago.
The beach is wonderful in the evening. The crowds are thinning, the sun is setting, and it’s not too hot. Everyone gets a good swim, and The Girl and I usually end up strolling along the shore. A quick rinse off in the shower afterwards, and pajamas are waiting in the car.
I’ve been pondering the beach a bit more lately since our family now dreams of a New York farm life. Could we live without the beach?
A few weeks ago, I was in a very grouchy state of mind and took the kids to the beach anyway. I’m always so amazed that the elements of the beach–the wind, the salt air, the ocean, and the sand–all just seem to wash away any negativity. It’s some kind of unspoken miracle, really.
The cure for anything is salt water–sweat, tears, or the sea. –Isak Dinesen
No. 1 — September 15th, 2010 at 10:33 pm
Yes, and if you leave it you will miss its simple cure, and it will be necessary to find ways to swim in warm waters every year…the gulf is truly special for its warmth, and the powdery white sand beaches. And the west view of the sun. I drove to Italy to get a warm sea water fix, that was the motivating force. Wonderful !!!! but no sandy beach at sunset, beautiful, but different that what you have there. We do get sand and water and open sky at lakes and cold oceans here, and sitting by water is part of its healing power. There will be lakes, rivers, and sea shores to be found. Some rocky, some sandy, but none so fine and white. To be embraced by the bath water warm of the gulf, to enter the water with out cringing even a little at the temperature, that is something special.
No. 2 — September 15th, 2010 at 10:50 pm
Beautiful post. I should reinstate the same practice over here. And beautiful comments from our Swedish friend…
No. 3 — June 5th, 2011 at 9:04 pm
[…] After a fantastic steak dinner and a glass of wine, tonight we headed to the beach for our first after-dinner swim of the summer. The water was much colder than we anticipated, but we enjoyed ourselves […]