According to Webster’s Dictionary, a beach is, “The sloping shore of a body of water; strand; especially, a sandy shore used for swimming.” Everyone, however, knows a beach is much, much more than a simple definition. A beach is thousands of miles of sand rippling in all directions as far as the eye can see. A beach is pure white sand undulating down to the shore to kiss the pristine blue water. A beach is where sand dunes rise and fall, heaving in fits and starts as the wind moves them in flowing swells across the landscape. A beach is where everyone comes out to play in the sand, the swell and the sun. As one pundit wishfully put it, “Life is a beach.”
If only, that was true. A beach is a place to escape from your every day troubles as you walk hand-in-hand with someone you care about along its long, forever shores. A beach is where you help your partner, your soul mate, your lover or mate-to-be, write love letters in the sand. A beach is the space where your lend a hand to children of all ages as they construct simple or elaborate sand castles watching them rise into the air like your dreams and fears only to be washed away by the crest of the next big wave. This is a beach.
A beach is a play land for everyone. It provides you with the atmosphere and the tools to enjoy yourself to the fullest. You can take a long walk off a short pier at a beach. You can sit forever on its shores or in a boat, with the brilliant sand in sight and gain insight as you fish all day long. Fishing is an art of patience of skill, a study in philosophy. A day at the beach is a day of escape.
There is always so much to do at a beach. You can swim, sail, scuba dive, water ski, fish and play. The beach is also the perfect place to do a lot of nothing. Sit back, put up your feet, breathe deep the air, absorb the sun’s warmth – mindful of the rays, and think deeply of naught. Read or not, as it suits you.
The beach is so much for so many. It is romantic walks at midnight under a full moon. It is splashing water at your best or newfound friend under the mid-day sun. It is sitting quietly hoping a fish may – or may not – bite as evening comes. It is the laughter of people playing volleyball as the sun fades or expressing amusement and disbelief at those tales told around the late night campfire. A beach is this and so much more.
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