To the beach

Listening to "Back to Tupelo" by Mark Knopfler

Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

I have so much to do that I believe I'll start with a....

Nap?

Over the last two weeks Drake and I have been dashing around, trying to finish up various projects, starting new ones, and combating some unexpected hiccups.  Some days if feels as though the end is within reach, yet other days we feel like we will be on the hard for the rest of our lives.  Eileen Quinn was right when she sang that life on the hard was just hard.  

To say that we needed a break was a bit of an understatement.  So, we borrowed a car late one afternoon and headed for atlantic beach.  A drive, ferry ride, and some more driving got us to the beach in about an hour.  By the time we had parked it was early evening which meant the crowds had thinned as everyone moved inland in search of food and a shower.  We had space to move around and just breathe...

As our toes dug into the sand and our eyes scanned the waves crashing, we both felt such a weight lift and, suddenly, remembered why we were doing all this hard work.  A dusty, dirty yard can make you forget the end goal...it becomes smudgy and difficult to see over the mountain of tasks, but breathing in that salty air our senses reawakened.  It was just what we needed.

last bit of sun before the storm

Drake suddenly caught my attention and pointed behind me.  A gigantic swirling mass of boiling black clouds was hurtling towards us.  It was moving so swiftly and in such a solid line that we could see the sandy beach being whipped up as it moved in our direction.  We stood and gazed at the sea as the first winds crashed into us and marveled at the few brave (crazy?) souls who grabbed their surf boards and charged into the water.  As the first drops of rain began to fall, we ran for the car, feeling rejuvenated and ready to tackle another day.

storm rolling in

we simply watched as it moved towards us

moments before the rain started