Wedding on the Beach

What a perfect spot to get married.
Crystal lights on the water lit by the sun,
Family and friends, arm in arm, as witnesses.
Seagulls flying overhead!

May your marriage by long, happy, and healthy!

Birds in the Wind

Today, the wind kicked up the waves.  On the pier, I stopped for a moment, watching a young (I think), grey sea gull trying to fly against the wind and NOT succeeding.

She lifted her wings ready to take flight.  She would get up in the air and the wind would push her backwards almost in slow motion.  Then she'd land, lift her wings again and try and try again to get a little further and each time she'd appear to be flying backwards.  She paused on the sand and then tried again.  I couldn't watch much more as it was painful to see this little seabird try to achieve what seemed impossible.

Humans on the pier and on the beach almost made a game out of letting the strong winds push them forwards or backwards and it was hard to walk a straight line with the gusts.  I looked back at some of the birds flapping in vain against the wind.  Maybe the young gull was playing a game too!  Who knows?!  Before I saw her, two other seagulls flew over me, flapping with every effort and making it down on the other side of the pier.  I could almost imagine them: "Race you to the other side!" one would say, and the other would say, "we'll see about that!"  So many different kinds of life out today yet a similar seeming struggle against pressure pushing you in the opposite direction.  Like the little seagull, we can only hope we're strong enough to push through the wind.

White Rock Reminder of War

I saw a train go by the White Rock beach last week on the way to Vancouver.  That's not unusual.  What was unusual was the cargo and people's response to it.  On at least three large flatbed cars sat army tanks and jeeps.  Inside the coffee house, many got up to see the train.  I sensed curiosity and also a resentment towards that particular cargo.  I really hope it wasn't just me, but even if it is, the tanks were unwelcome. 

There is a sense of paradise to the White Rock waterfront.  Many played with their children, walked along the wet sand as the tide was far out that day.  It was warm and ice cream cones were a favourite snack to eat along the promenade, pier and beach. 

It just didn't fit.  I was glad that the train went by so quickly.  I know war exists and I know that many of our young people are over fighting and trying to save the lives of innocent citizens. Most places I've lived in had army bases.  I know that war exists and that many cannot escape the bloody carnage they see every day.  I am one of many who have, on occasion, said "well, they know what they're getting into."  I'm sure we cannot imagine what they see and deal with every day, but I still say, "Bring them Home! Bring them home so that they can see the ocean or the prairies or the mountains!"  Don't let them have to watch again and again as a brother or sister-in-arms gets carried away in yet another airfield ceremony.

Patterns

The pier and breakwater almost look like an arrow, pointing a way to a new journey or maybe a sunken treasure! The patterns I see on the beach are irregular and in different sizes.  It suits me, I think.  I'm not putting myself down when I say that I am a little odd.  I'm always looking for things that don't exactly match!  More interesting that way!