SUNDAY AT THE BEACH

I had a lovely afternoon at the beach yesterday, with my daughter. We walked for several miles watching the surfers out beyond the break. There was a kite surfer who was very entertaining as he would go flying off the tops of waves, lifted by the parachute he was holding onto.

There was quite a mix of outfits out and about the beach. Jess and I were somewhat bundled up as it was heading into late afternoon and we were expecting a drop in temperatures once the sun went down. But there were people out there in bikinis and bathing trunks playing soccer in the sand and even braving the water, though not for very long. 

I love that beach because it is so open to allowing people and dogs to show up and play. People rode by me on their bikes on the beach, and there were runners and joggers. There were couples strolling hand-in-hand and little children writing their names in the sand and building sand castles and forts.

We stopped at Jack's Crab Shack for a snack and a drink while we sat on the outdoor patio and watched the sun go down. The drive back into town was just as glorious as we were headed west and were treated to a vibrant sunset of peach and pink and orange and deep purple. I couldn't have painted a more colorful sky if I'd tried.

Today it is cooler and raining. As I sit here on the patio typing I notice that the leaves are starting to come out on the birches in the quad. Unlike Wisconsin, trees don't really go dormant here as much as they shed their leaves, take a moment to shake off the last years growth and rest a bit, and then come right back to living fully.

Trees in Wisconsin retreat deep into their roots in the ground and to the protected center of their trunks. When they come back to life it's like they are coming out of a season long coma that always seem to have some of us wondering if they survived the winter. Trees in Wisconsin burst to life, in the spring, grabbing every day they can before they are forced to retreat once more.

So today I work and get ahead of the curve because tomorrow is my daughter's birthday and I am dedicating the day to doing some fun and memorable things with her.

Have a great day all and sending you hugs!

Betsy

CHILLING IN FORIDA

Hey there, friends, family, acquaintances and the just curious. I am chilling in Florida. Out on the deck this AM with a cup of Java that tastes like cinnamon buns and soaking up some sun and a beautiful sunny Sunday morning. Coming from Wisconsin, it is such a treat to listen to the birds in the morning and to smell fresh mowed grass in February. I'm in northern Florida so there are some seasons, but not like in the Frozen Tundra. Winter is marked by a little more rain and some fall like temperatures. It seems funny to say, but I believe Winter here is one of my favorite seasons. 

The beaches are lovely this time of year. You can walk for miles and miles with just enough people out there surfing and flying kites and just enjoying the sand and surf to make it interesting, but not so many to be overwhelming. The surfers are bundled up in their wet suites and seem impervious to the chill of the water as they gather out beyond where the waves break chatting each other up and waiting for their next ride.

You see the most interesting things here. Sometimes it feels like the movie Clock Work Orange doing retirement. There was a woman the other day walking the beach with her raccoon on a leash. A couple of weeks ago there was a highland celebration on the beach and so there were people wandering about with bagpipes, in kilts and some dancing in the streets. 

I have a couple of little tea houses that I've found and love to frequent, both for their vegan earth mother atmosphere and for the neighborhoods where they are located. It is so much fun to drive into a neighborhood and watch as the dress and people and way of being totally changes. I am very fond of this one corner of the word where everyone seems to wear black, right down to their black converse high-tops, and they have lots of tattoos, and usually unruly hair, or no hair and they talk about the most interesting things like art, and politics and philosophy. 

Today I get to Skype with my people in Medellin, Columbia. A couple of delightful expats that I've connected with in creating on-line training.  I love the guys, their energy, their ideas and creativity. I sometimes have to pinch myself to make sure that I'm not dreaming as I get to do what I love, with people that I really like and admire, and make a living at it. I tell you what, life after 60 is getting better and better!

Well, time to put my feet up, have a cup of coffee and enjoy the morning. Wishing all of you the same kind of enjoyable day.

Hugs,
Betsy

Thought 17: Bits and Pieces That Come Together

I am walking along the beach, my feet grounded deep in the sand, my head in the azure, sun-drenched sky, and my body and spirit are connecting each to the other - a prism of joy, happiness and gratitude. I walk balanced between sand and sky - between earth and heaven, and the ocean sings to me. Its voice rising and falling, its waves flashing as it forms its language, unintelligible to the human ear but so enchanting. My heart dances with the waves, my rhythms become one with those of the wind and sea. I turn to see my footprints in the sand of where I have been, soon swept clean and erased by the water's ebb and flow. They are forgotten as I I look ahead, down the beach, at the stretch of bright white sand that teases me to continue my walk. This is the landing strip for my soul. I follow the sea birds as they dive and sweep, dart and call. I sit for awhile on the top of a dune, watching the wind move through the sea grass, stirring it into motion, rustling as it passes through the grass and trails off down the beach in small spirals of sand. This world of sea, and sand, and sun, is intoxicating, and I drink until I can't possibly take in any more. This day is a gift like no other, and I look forward to saying the same thing...tomorrow...and the next day...and the next...


This is my life, as I've always dreamed of it. I love my cottage by the sea "Coeur de la Mer". It is an indoor statement of light and water and sand so that it mirrors a sunny day at the beach. Piece by piece I found exactly what fit. Yard sales, estate sales, friends knowing just the piece. The interior is a lovely orchestration of gestures of art and love, in furniture and wood, in fabric and paint. Put your ear to this cottage and you can hear the ocean. Step out on the deck and feel the sea breeze as it pushes the hammock and the seat swing. Everything designed for comfort, designed to move, to give to hold, to nurture to welcome, it is all so familiar. White washed canvas artfully brushed with shades of sea greens and blues, of shell pinks and peaches, beautifully worn in just the right places. And all acquiesces to the expanse of white sand and dunes that is the beach. I have planted beach roses leading down the path to the beach. They remind me of days in Rhode Island ... but no rocky beach here, no. The harshness of the New England shore has been replaced by white beach and Atlantic swells. I love it so much that I can't see leaving yet. Other places will wait. I want to enjoy this while I have it. Impermanence is such that I want to roll in it like a dog in something that smells amazing - I want it all over me. If I leave I want to carry the smell with me.

Day 63: Sea and Sand, Body and Spirit: This Day is a Gift Like No Other

I am walking along the beach, my feet grounded deep in the sand, my head in the azure, sun-drenched sky, and my body and spirit are connecting each to the other - a prism of joy, happiness and gratitude.  I walk balanced between sand and sky - between earth and heaven, and the ocean sings to me.  Its voice rising and falling, its waves flashing as it forms its language, unintelligible to the human ear but so enchanting. My heart dances with the waves, my rhythms become one with those of the wind and sea.  I turn to see my footprints in the sand of where I have been, soon swept clean and erased by the water's ebb and flow. They are forgotten as I  I look ahead, down the beach, at the stretch of bright white sand that teases me to continue my walk.  This is the landing strip for my soul.  I follow the sea birds as they dive and sweep, dart and call.  I sit for awhile on the top of a dune, watching the wind move through the sea grass, stirring it into motion, rustling as it passes through the grass and trails off down the beach in small spirals of sand.  This world of sea, and sand, and sun, is intoxicating, and I drink until I can't possibly take in any more. This day is a gift like no other, and I look forward to saying the same thing...tomorrow...and the next day...and the next...

Day 28

Sitting on the balcony porch of the condo, listening to the earth breath.  In...Out...In...Out...
Nice!!!!

Day 27

 

One of my BESTEST FRIENDS, Sally, crashed on her chair with her dog Charlie after a hectic day of beach, and shopping, and catching up.  We'll start again tomorrow with a walk on the beach, some time in the pool and a GREAT Sunday meal!!!  This is the life!!!

Day 24

Leaving in two days for Florida.  Leaving the snow, ice, winter, and gray of Wisconsin behind and going to white sand beaches, walks to St. Andrew Park, swimming in the Gulf and listening to the earth breath.  It doesn't get better than that.  I have a week and a half to soak it all up.