Life's Better With a Beach

Hey everybody!

On Georges Island this week, I got to work fishing and sports. At sports, we played kickball with Blackstone Academy. Most of the kids were between 7-9 years old, and every single one had a competitive spirit.

Down at fishing, I cut bait, baited lines, and played with crabs with the help of my coworkers. At one point, we even spotted a giant moon jelly in the water floating underneath the dock. I also got the chance to meet the cutest little boy named Quincy. Quincy was very scared of all the crabs at first, but as he watched the other children pick them up and pet them, he began to look more interested. Every time I leaned towards him with a crab in my hand he would shriek with a mix of delight and fear.

Quincy beginning to show interest 

 After a little bit of time passed, I had to pull up the crab trap to see if he had caught anything. Sure enough we had a giant Rock crab clinging to the outside of the trap. All of the kids who saw the crab squealed with excitement. He was the first one I pulled off and showed to the crowd. That's when I heard a little voice start yelling "crab! crab!" It was Quincy reaching out towards the crab making a patting motion with his hand. I slowly leaned over with the crab and he curled into a ball. I told him the crab was very friendly and demonstrated stroking his shell. With caution, Quincy reached out and tapped the top of the crab--a big smile stretched across his face. That was the best part of my day.

The following day, I worked the Beach Bash and Splash at Carson Beach. There were about 350 kids that showed up for the event, ready to play on the beach. Before the event started, I was in charge of setting up all of the kites and sports equipment. With the help of Peter and Jovanni we got about 5 kites up in the air before the camp groups started showing up.

Me setting up the Kites

Once the camps saw the kites in the air, they started shouting and pointing as they lined up to get their picture taken. Most of the younger kids were begging us to put more kites together so they could run down the beach and watch the kites fly behind them. After the excitement of the kites died down, all the boys wanted to get a football game going. One of the boys on my team dropped the ball at one point in the game because he spotted "sea-chickens" flying over the water. I asked if he meant to say seagulls, but he insisted that they were "sea-chickens." Later, he explained to me that when he was little his mom used to bring him to the beach all the time to watch the "sea-chickens" fly across the sea and into the sun. This boy's name is Michael, and he made an impact on my life.

A combination of football and whiffle ball

What Michael said reminded me of what my grandmother and I always used to talk about when I was his age. She would always tell me that she couldn't live without her beach. Her beach had something to offer to anyone and everyone willing to give it love. At the time, I never understood what she meant. How could a beach give me something? Now I know that the beach has given me more than I could ever ask. The beach is my home. It's where I'm at peace and feel safe. The beach is loving and protects me from myself. When I feel sad or confused I can sit on the beach and clear my mind. The waves in the ocean give me music I can fall asleep to. The beach gave Michael memories he'll never forget. The beach is a safe place that I can call home.

What does the beach give you?

Your harbor explorer,
Patrice