The sea is symbolic of creation and our Creator. It will hold a lifetime of fascination, study and learning. However, we can never comprehend the fullness in this lifetime. Most of us, only experience the parts that are shallow enough sowe feel safe to wade and swim. Some skim along its surface; others experience the extremes of calm and storms.
Few will experience firsthand the full depth, the complex currents, or the unseen mountains and canyons which lie beneath the surface. Yet it is these unseen parts that control the currents of the sea, the climate of our continents, and interconnect our lives in ways we rarely understand or appreciate.
Sunrise at Pemaquid, Maine
Our DNA has origins within the sea. That may be one reason we feel drawn and connected to the oceans. It is a place to reconnect with nature and to step aside from our hectic lives. The sea is a place we can experience with all of our physical senses of taste, smell, touch, sound and sight. It is a place of reflection. It is a location where we make the effort to experience the sunrise, pause for the sunset, and meander the rich boundary between land and sea.
This sunrise at Folly Beach, SC is from 2018. It was my reward for day number 6 following surgery in Charleston. I managed to sneak out with my camera, tripod, and attached medical equipment, cross the road to the washout, and experience the sunrise. I collapsed as soon as I got back to the house, but the 200 yard round trip trek was worth it.
For many, a special beach is a thin place where our minds are cleared of all distractions. It is a place where we go unmasked with nowhere to hide. It is a place to connect with our higher power. One such place for me is in Pemaquid, Maine. The 14 foot tidal height change on the rocky slopes is mesmerizing. The tidal pools are temporary refuges where one can observe and be astounded at the diversity of plants and animals within a few square feet.
I love this quote by Eric Weiner where he describes thin places as locations that “…beguile and inspire, sedate and stir, places where, for a few blissful moments I loosen my death grip on life, and can breathe again.” https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/travel/thin-places-where-we-are-jolted-out-of-old-ways-of-seeing-the-world.html
Sunrise is not far off. Let’s look for each other there.
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