Walking to the Beach

July is the month right before school starts up and the scramble to be prepared for that first day begins.  If you are fortunate, you might just be able to squeeze in a family vacation.  This year, our vacation was definitely last minute and not planned.  We booked our condo on the 4^th of July, a Thursday, and was packed and heading out on Saturday.   My husband’s grandpa said that he wanted to see the ocean one more time; he celebrated his 87^th birthday this May. My in-laws, grandparents, my husband, kids and I packed up and headed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

For someone who is a planner and a little OCD, the packing and last minute details of the vacation drove me crazy.  I hurried and went shopping on Thursday night, after booking our place to stay.  Like a wild woman, I scurried around trying to make sure that I had everything we would need for the long 5 night stay on the beach, which was only 5 minutes from a store! 

Our vacation was not the most relaxing, with three kids piled in the car, ages 4, 3 and 1.  There was fighting, screaming, biting, hitting, name-calling and frequent stops to the bathroom and McDonalds.  There were moments in the normal 12 hour drive; that soon became a 16 hour drive, we thought we wouldn’t survive another minute in the car. Once we arrived to Myrtle Beach, driving down Oceanic Blvd, and seeing my children’s eyes light up with seeing the ocean for the first time (that they can remember), was worth all the headaches to get there!  Hearing my three year old, giggle when crossing the board walk to the beach, saying, “Look at all the sand!” made me stop and realize why I did this trip.

We can prepare our whole lives for a moment or an event, but miss it all for being too busy.  Sometimes, it’s slowing down to see the ocean through the eyes of a child for the first time or enjoying what could be our last time through the eyes of an older person.  Savor walking to the beach, feeling the sand between your toes, wind blowing in your hair, the smell of the sun and surf, tasting the salt water on your lips.  One day, you may not feel like walking down to the beach anymore.  Thank you Papa for taking us to the beach!!