Goodbye beach, until we meet again
Early morning … my last day of vacation at the beach watching the sun rise out of the horizon. It looks like it comes out of the sea, but unless you’re one of those people who believes the Earth is flat (bless your hearts), it doesn’t. It is a glorious sight, though.
As I sat readying my phone camera to get a perfect shot my granddaughter, Alex came up. She is generally not an early riser, but she told me she wanted to see the sun rise out of the ocean.
A bit later, another granddaughter and her mama, my daughter, came out to go to the beach and see the sunrise there. I was invited to go, but I like my spot to watch for it. All three headed out to witness a beautiful sight. I watched them walk over the little bridge leading to the beach until they disappeared.
The sunrise was spectacular even though a cloud bank obscured the sun until it made a brilliant appearance out of a small hole in some puffy clouds up from the horizon. This sun on this particular morning sent a tiny ray of light so bright, it almost blinded me. Before too long almost the whole sun had risen with a few miniature clouds in front. It made me smile and it didn’t disappoint me. I added it to my pictures displayed on Facebook. The sun was invisible only one morning out of the seven I witnessed.
Some of the highlights of this vacation had some special moments I adored. My granddaughter, Evelyn, wanted to try one of my Oysters Rockefeller. She is seven and I wasn’t sure she’d like oysters, but if she was willing to try one, I was willing to share. Much to my surprise and to others with us, she loved that one oyster and wanted another one. I only had six of them but sharing something with my granddaughter like oysters warmed my heart. Her mama, Kelly, later in the week told me Evelyn had ordered Oysters Rockefeller when she went out to eat.
We brought Tippy (Doodle), our precious wee doggie who has never travelled far from home, with us this year. She is getting older and I didn’t want to leave her. The thing is, she is a great little dog. She rarely barks, is totally house-broken, and was a hit with others in our group. She’s friendly and loves people…and attention. She got plenty of it. And the only other dog she barked at was a huge one of mixed heritage.
One morning, I decided to take her to the beach. When she first saw it, she stopped and just stared. She wasn’t afraid of it. She was puzzled by exactly what it was. I let her walk in the water, smell it, and taste it. She liked walking in it as her short, little legs carried her along at a nice little clip. I think she enjoyed her vacation, too.
Every year, our daughter and son-inlaw plan a “Low Country Boil.” It’s always a hit with everyone and this year was no exception. What made it even more special was that it was our grandson Hatcher’s 6th birthday. We all noshed on all the goodies included in this feast of corn, shrimp, sausage, potatoes, seasonings, bread…I probably left something out… and finished it off with cupcakes and ice cream. It was wonderful as usual.
One thing I noticed was that the young folks who at one time were “the littles” are now growing up. They still stayed together playing at the beach, riding waves, and creating sandcastles even though they are now teenagers or close to teenagers. They are no longer little, but they still got together as a group and created all kind of things with Minecraft which has become a tradition. I snapped a photo like I do every year. A new group of “littles” has formed now. They are precious.
For several years our son-in-law, Will, plans an extravaganza called Beach Party Blackout for the kids on the last night of vacation. In truth, the kids and adults love it. He gathers all kinds of glow thingies for people to adorn themselves with, and it has become bigger and better every year.
With flashlights in hand, everyone who wants to participate (40 of us this year) gathers as a group on the beach. We dance and carry on with lots of laughter. The kids run around like typical kids from our Gaines at two to some of us adults. It’s a joyful send off to a fantastic vacation.
So here I sit now in what was once my mother’s apartment attached to our home remembering what a grand time we all had this year at Amelia Island. Until next year, y’all … peace out.