The Beach & I

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I have never been a beach person.  Maybe it's because of my fair skin, which gets burnt to a crisp even in 73 degree weather.  Maybe it's because I am afraid of scaring the natives in my bathing suit.  Maybe it's because of the sand that gets in every crevice.  I don't have fond memories of the beach, because as a child I often left with sunburns that sent me to doctors' offices, even after applying SPF 75.  But the fact is, I live by the beach.

For the past year I have come to terms with the fact that everyone around me loves the beach, relishes living by it, and always wants to go.  I, on the other hand, would rather drive an hour up to the mountains to breathe in the crisp air and see nature at its finest.

However, the past few Thursday mornings I have had the opportunity to have some rare time to myself, and each Thursday I have found myself at the beach.  It is within 2 miles of my house, and the weather has been beautiful.  For $2, I can park there for however long I want, read a book or take a walk, and breathe in the sea salt air.

Last Thursday I stopped by my favorite cafe, The Yellow Vase, and picked up a cupcake (now you know why I don't wear bathing suits).  They were filming 90210 that day, and these two girls walked right by me.

Um, awesome!!  Seriously, everyone on that set was so beautiful. There I was with my crazy hair, no makeup on and my outfit from the floor of my bedroom - I felt really hot.  I fit right in.

Anyway, back to the beach.  My point is, that I think I am falling in love with the beach.  Not because of the sand in my pants, or the sunburn I might get, or all the interesting people there.  It is because when I am there I feel close to God.  Even if I am having a bad day, I can take a little drive, put .25 cents in the meter, roll down my window and hear the waves.  And it even gets better when I see something like this:

This photo was taken last week by my friend Heidi.  Every time I go down there I see dolphins. Today I walked a mile on the sand, while they swam the same direction the whole time.  My friend Melanie was there yesterday and they were doing flips in the air!  When I see the dolphins, it always reminds me of the glory of God.  Something about seeing His creation like that just speaks to my soul.

This week we also took a little trip to see the dead sardines.  You may have heard about this on the news - over 1.5 million sardines were found dead in Redondo Beach on Tuesday morning.  We had rough winds on Monday night, and the sardines made a wrong turn and ended up in the harbor (where it dead ends). There were so many of them that they suffocated to death.  It was really sad seeing them there, many with their mouths wide open like they were gasping for air.  I was expecting to see tiny sardines (like the ones in the cans), but these were all 6-8" long.  The boys loved it.  They were fascinated and asked so many questions.  I have never seen anything like it.

In talking with people about this event, numerous people have said, "It reminds me of the end of days."  Even people with no faith are saying thing like that.  Again, nature has a way of turning people to God, even in odd ways like this.

So, while you may not find me parked on the sand in my bathing suit with my beach umbrella, you may find me there...sitting in wonder and awe at God's handiwork.  It is amazing!

"Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying, 'To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!'"  Revelation 5: 13