Lingering images of our week at the beach

This is the last morning that I will awaken to the crash of the waves outside the house.

Images that will stay with me: Boy in his red life vest, Girl sitting on the pink beach chair squinting into the sun, my two nieces holding hands with my brother walking out into the surf, my nephew on surfboard and skim board- making it look easy, my long haired nieces coming out of the waves like mermaids - their hair decorated with tiny shells, finding the shark's tooth, my niece swimming back and forth between her parents - without her life vest, my niece running on the sandbar and jumping in the wake - with Boy never far behind, my sister loving her husband- my brother-n-law loving my sister, the newest Harry Potter book being devoured in 24hrs or less, the scent of sunblock, E digging in the sand with the kids, many dolphins and one that put on a diving show for Girl, multi-colored beach towels lining the rail from one end of the deck to the other, my sister-n-law reading in the midst of noisy chaos -how does she do that?, my dad body surfing at 70, getting lost trying to find the grocery store with my dad's wife -stopping off at Starbuck's for solace and directions, my brother screening The Planet Earth to all and sundry, Crocs strewn on the sand at the bottom of the steps leading to the beach, 8 kids squeezed onto one couch watching a movie, popsicles on the deck dripping down chins and this moment... the quiet before anyone stirs, the crash of the waves below and the lightening of the sky....

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