Beach therapy (aka Babywearing on the beach)

My Southern friend and I agree on many things. Two things we disagree on are which college football team is the best and which is better, mountains or beach. Yesterday, her team won and mine lost (boo,hoo). But at least I got to spend most of the afternoon and evening playing in the sand and letting the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico wash over my feet and take all my anxieties out to sea. I love the mountains too, but the beach to me is my therapy.

There is something so calming about hearing the ocean waves hitting the shore and feeling the sand retreat from under your toes with each wave. I love the beach in all weather. I have a history of being quite the sun-bather (although not much since having kids for obvious reasons) and love the feeling of the sun warming my skin as I lay perfectly still on the sand. But I also love the beach in the rain, almost more than the sun. I love to watch the rain fall on the water and the sand and bask in the grandness of God's creation as the dark clouds move over the water. I love the beach when the air is crisp and the wind is strong enough for kite-flying and wind-surfing (one of which we did and the other we watched yesterday). I love the feeling of my feet buried in the cool sand. I especially love watching Lucas learn to love all that too. As we drove up, he smiled and started to excitedly say "beach, mommy, beach!" That's my boy!

There is something magical about the ocean, something mysterious yet transparent. I feel so connected to my Creator when standing in front of some of His best work. At the beach and on the ocean, one can witness both great storms and great calm. I have lived through many hurricanes and witnessed all too first hand the devastation that insues. You can even see the broken pier in the picture above. But to be on the beach on a day like yesterday, with the warm waters perfectly calm despite the wind and the almost vacant beach, one can't help but think that God Himself must find great pleasure in the glorious pink and orange sky as the sun sets over the horizen. I stood there, holding Lucas, and hummed "How Great Thou Art" as we watched the sun sink. I couldn't think of anything more appropriate to say. Just down the beach, a couple got married surrounded by their friends and family as the sun set behind them. So perfect. I have always imagined that when Jesus returns, it will resemble a cloud when the sunlight is passing through and the rays of light are streaming out from all sides. The beach at sunset, in the rain, in the sun, in the wind, in a storm or silent calm... all points to a creative and amazing God.

I need to soak it all in, enough to get me through the cold Chicago winter. And get me through the moments when I feel far from calm and far from He who created me and the beach that I love. I have moments of both great storm and great calm too. Maybe that is why I feel so deeply tied to this place. I got home and didn't even care that my Gators lost. I was on a beach-high. The mountains are amazing too. But for me, it doesn't get much better than this.


























The obligatory picture of Lucas in the sling on the beach... my sling goes EVERY- WHERE with me.