Dear Graham,
To walk on the ocean at low tide in the gentle rain is one of life’s blessings. I wish you could have walked beside me this afternoon. I think you would have loved every minute of it.
The rain falls softly on my arms and legs, cooling the air and cooling my body. The sand is cool and slightly damp. The waves have pulled back into the sea, and the beach is long and wide, like a vast desert.
I watch tiny soft-shell crabs, carrying their shells on their backs, emerge from the water and begin their journey across the beach. Hermit crabs, wearing their rich porcelain mosaic homes, scurry across the sand and duck into their sandy holes. I bend down to pick up a beautiful spiral shell of mahogany and cream, perfect in every way. But when I peek into the crevice of its opening, I see a soft, shiny gray snail. He is a large snail, firmly settled in his home. I gently lay the shell back on the sand and walk on.
You know, Graham, one of the greatest lessons the sea has taught me is that not every beautiful shell is meant to be collected. Sometimes the greatest joy is simply admiring its beauty and leaving it exactly where it belongs.
A little farther along, I see a red crab swimming in the shallow water of a tide pool. I have never seen a crab swim. They are always scurrying across the sand or diving into the water, but this is the first time I have been able to watch one swim through the clear water of a tide pool. I smiled the whole time I watched him.
The clouds are towering mounds in soft shades of purple. The sky is gray-blue, and the water a deep gray blue, with white waves breaking along the shore. I feel the tide turning. The waves are swelling and rushing toward the beach, their vibrant blue backs curling into white foam.
Today is the Fourth of July—our country’s 250th birthday—and I am celebrating with Tom on the shores of the Pacific Ocean at Destiladeros Beach in Pedasi, Panama. As I walk, I find myself singing:
“O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.”
As I sing, I watch the sea shine, sparkle, and soar in grace and magnificence. I am happy that you often stand beside the Pacific ocean of Vancouver, and just like I do you hear the rhythm of the waves, and feel the same sense of gratitude that filled my heart today.
My beachcombing has become more purposeful. I have been creating jewelry from some of the shells I have gathered. I met a jeweler in Venao, a kindred creative spirit, and I bring her my gifts from the sea. Together, we transform them into beautiful necklaces, earrings, and bracelets.
She helped me make a beautiful necklace for Tom from two shells I found—a large shell and a smaller one. The smaller shell fit perfectly within the center of the larger shell, creating what looked to me like a little cosmic mandala. She fastened the shells onto a dark brown cord. Tom loves it, and I love it too. I love to create, and this jeweler, this artist, is a kindred creative soul.
My life is becoming so much fun. I love communing with the sea and creating beautiful jewelry from the gifts I gather along the seashore. It reminds me that the world is full of treasures for those who take the time to look.
The air was cool, and our walk was deeply satisfying—a wonderful tribute to our nation’s birthday.
Blessings from sea to shining sea.
God bless America.
God bless all the people of the Earth.
With all my love, CC
