On the beach
We decided to take it easy this morning and spent some time journaling and praying. The day started out cold, but Chuck is determined to wear shorts for the entire trip. Since he does his praying outside, even in winter at home, he went for a walk while I laid claim to our room.
At noon we decided to go to the beach. I wanted to stay for a beach sunset because the skies were so clear, but I wanted to be warm enough. I put on three long sleeve sweaters.
Chuck wanted to swim.
We were quite the pair.
Chuck chose a different beach than the one we were at a couple of days ago. We had lunch as soon as we got there. This is the view from the park bench where we ate.
It became clear that it was going to be warmer than I expected. I ditched the first sweater. After lunch Chuck found a place to change and then went jogging a bit to get warmed up in preparation for his swim. While he swam I sat on the beach with my journal, but the birds were so friendly I ended up taking pictures. I'll only bore you with the one that proves Chuck was in the water.
He actually got all the way in and swam for at least 20 minutes. Then he was well chilled, while I was getting quite toasty and got rid of the second sweater. I'd brought along a sarong and since I was still too warm, I changed out of jeans into the sarong. The only shoes I had were sneakers, so I took off the crew socks, but kept the sneakers. I wanted to get in a nice long brisk walk before the day was over.
We moved to a different area of the beach, since our parking time was up already. Parking was $1.25/hour, no matter where along the beach you parked, so we moved down toward the tip of the beach, closer to restrooms and shops.
We walked down to a fishing pier. Chuck is collecting seashells so this was not a brisk walk. At the fishing pier there were birds that let you come right up to them. I'm not posting all the picture, but this was too amazing to not share.
This is one of four pelicans. Each was different so it's hard to choose which one to post.
This small white bird was on the park bench. I don't know what it was.
This larger bird sat just outside the guard rails and I had to hold the camera out and guess whether I was aimed correctly. The best shot seems to have the bird eating a tiny woman. Oh well.
Then we decided to get a picture of us. The sun was incredibly bright, which makes it really difficult to see the display on the back of the camera, so this is what we ended up with, after deleting all the many worse shots.
Now it was time for my brisk walk. Chuck went to the car for a nap and I set off along the water line. It was so nice that I walked for a long time, and even did some jogging before I realized that these sneakers without socks were probably not such a good idea. For the last bit I took off the shoes and cooled my raw feet in the waves. That felt so amazing that I kept going in farther and farther. Then a couple of larger waves took me by surprise, and soon my skirt was wet nearly to my waist. Here I'm cleaning the sand off my feet in my wet skirt.
By that time we were about a half hour from sunset, so we walked along the beach slowly and gingerly. A group of dolphins were spotted very close in to shore and Chuck moved quickly along the shore with them to try to get a picture. There were probably four or five of them. We have one photo with four fins showing. I'm not posting that one because the fins were far enough away that it would be hard to identify them. This is the shot with the clearest identifiable fin, right at sunset.
Actually we have some pretty great sunset shots too, that actually have the sun setting in them, but this is enough pictures for today.
We found a Wendy's on the way home and since we were so hungry AND this is a vacation we decided it was OK to depart from the dollar menu :-)
* * * * * * * * *
Part of what I thought about today was how to think about going on a trip like this. It's pretty much out of character for us to fly somewhere and spend this kind of money on us. I know that among our economic group, taking a trip like this to celebrate a relationship like ours is a no brainer, but how do I see this in relationship to people who can't do the same? How do I justify flying for fun in a world where flying is the least environmentally friendly way to travel?
I know it is part of who I am to think these thoughts. We are having such a good time, and I think sometimes we let ourselves believe that having a good time is the proof that God has blessed this decision. Well, God has blessed this trip, but I'm not certain that this means God wouldn't have blessed a trip with less impact.
Still, seeing Chuck's joy on the beach is a memory I can't put words to.
Maybe this is a trip that ignores justice. I don't know. I wrote in my journal that our lives have been pretty focused around justice most of the time. Jesus took time away to pray. He didn't fly to the beach for a week, but then he knew he only had three years, and his time was limited. And he lived close to the water. How is that for justification?
Anyway, there is always a lot to ponder.
I'm really grateful for this week. It is replenishing my spirit. Maybe I would also be replenished at an inexpensive retreat center in Kansas, but this is where I am, and I'm going to experience the fullness of this place while I am here.
At noon we decided to go to the beach. I wanted to stay for a beach sunset because the skies were so clear, but I wanted to be warm enough. I put on three long sleeve sweaters.
Chuck wanted to swim.
We were quite the pair.
Chuck chose a different beach than the one we were at a couple of days ago. We had lunch as soon as we got there. This is the view from the park bench where we ate.
It became clear that it was going to be warmer than I expected. I ditched the first sweater. After lunch Chuck found a place to change and then went jogging a bit to get warmed up in preparation for his swim. While he swam I sat on the beach with my journal, but the birds were so friendly I ended up taking pictures. I'll only bore you with the one that proves Chuck was in the water.
He actually got all the way in and swam for at least 20 minutes. Then he was well chilled, while I was getting quite toasty and got rid of the second sweater. I'd brought along a sarong and since I was still too warm, I changed out of jeans into the sarong. The only shoes I had were sneakers, so I took off the crew socks, but kept the sneakers. I wanted to get in a nice long brisk walk before the day was over.We moved to a different area of the beach, since our parking time was up already. Parking was $1.25/hour, no matter where along the beach you parked, so we moved down toward the tip of the beach, closer to restrooms and shops.
We walked down to a fishing pier. Chuck is collecting seashells so this was not a brisk walk. At the fishing pier there were birds that let you come right up to them. I'm not posting all the picture, but this was too amazing to not share.
This is one of four pelicans. Each was different so it's hard to choose which one to post.
This small white bird was on the park bench. I don't know what it was.
This larger bird sat just outside the guard rails and I had to hold the camera out and guess whether I was aimed correctly. The best shot seems to have the bird eating a tiny woman. Oh well.
Then we decided to get a picture of us. The sun was incredibly bright, which makes it really difficult to see the display on the back of the camera, so this is what we ended up with, after deleting all the many worse shots.
Now it was time for my brisk walk. Chuck went to the car for a nap and I set off along the water line. It was so nice that I walked for a long time, and even did some jogging before I realized that these sneakers without socks were probably not such a good idea. For the last bit I took off the shoes and cooled my raw feet in the waves. That felt so amazing that I kept going in farther and farther. Then a couple of larger waves took me by surprise, and soon my skirt was wet nearly to my waist. Here I'm cleaning the sand off my feet in my wet skirt.
By that time we were about a half hour from sunset, so we walked along the beach slowly and gingerly. A group of dolphins were spotted very close in to shore and Chuck moved quickly along the shore with them to try to get a picture. There were probably four or five of them. We have one photo with four fins showing. I'm not posting that one because the fins were far enough away that it would be hard to identify them. This is the shot with the clearest identifiable fin, right at sunset.
Actually we have some pretty great sunset shots too, that actually have the sun setting in them, but this is enough pictures for today.We found a Wendy's on the way home and since we were so hungry AND this is a vacation we decided it was OK to depart from the dollar menu :-)
* * * * * * * * *
Part of what I thought about today was how to think about going on a trip like this. It's pretty much out of character for us to fly somewhere and spend this kind of money on us. I know that among our economic group, taking a trip like this to celebrate a relationship like ours is a no brainer, but how do I see this in relationship to people who can't do the same? How do I justify flying for fun in a world where flying is the least environmentally friendly way to travel?
I know it is part of who I am to think these thoughts. We are having such a good time, and I think sometimes we let ourselves believe that having a good time is the proof that God has blessed this decision. Well, God has blessed this trip, but I'm not certain that this means God wouldn't have blessed a trip with less impact.
Still, seeing Chuck's joy on the beach is a memory I can't put words to.
Maybe this is a trip that ignores justice. I don't know. I wrote in my journal that our lives have been pretty focused around justice most of the time. Jesus took time away to pray. He didn't fly to the beach for a week, but then he knew he only had three years, and his time was limited. And he lived close to the water. How is that for justification?
Anyway, there is always a lot to ponder.
I'm really grateful for this week. It is replenishing my spirit. Maybe I would also be replenished at an inexpensive retreat center in Kansas, but this is where I am, and I'm going to experience the fullness of this place while I am here.
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