Life's A Beach

There is a beach on the Chesapeake Bay we've been wanting to visit for years now, and it's never quite worked out. To rectify this situation, of course we decided to go there on what must be one of the busiest days of the year. When we arrived, the parking lot was filled beyond capacity. But since we'd payed our $20 entrance fee, we weren't deterred and looked for a spot. Since my skin thinks I'm a redhead, shade is imperative and we eventually found a shady spot with picnic table really close to the playground. Music was blaring from a cheap tape recorder, lots of people everywhere, next to us a family that decided no matter what their young son did, he deserved to be threatened with a spanking.

I was ready to have a grumpy day, but then something magical happened. We went down to the water to swim and hunt for fossilized shark's teeth. And people were so nice to each other. Many folks by the water were looking for treasures from the ocean, and people showed each other the fossils, shared water toys, gave fossils away, discussed jellyfish, played with strangers. Oldest and I were collecting pebbles and fossils in one bucket, and a boy of about 10 followed us and chatted about all our treasures. It was wonderful to connect with people in this way. In the DC area we're just not used to this unabashed friendliness, and we were all drinking up this gift of connection.