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Kittiwake of Zenith
Jul. 18th, 2018 09:45 pmIt was a beautiful day--again!--and we decided to take off and go to the beach. We took a couple of sandwiches, some water, and an apple. We planned to go to the beach that's only 45 minutes away--but we were so engrossed in conversation that we missed our exit. Rather than go to the bother of turning around and going back, we decided on the spur of the moment just to keep driving and go to our favorite beach 45 minutes farther north. What an unexpected pleasure!
We didn't take any of our usual hikes. We just went straight to the beach and walked down far enough to be masters of all we surveyed. People gather in front of the beach house with their umbrellas and music and cabanas and volleyball games and kites. But if you want solitude, all you have to do is walk for a few minutes, and there you are. We took the beach umbrella, and the Sparrowhawk took a folding chair. We sat in the shade and read and talked to give the sunscreen time to soak in. I NEVER do this. I always plunge immediately into the water. But today I decided to do the right thing, because the sun was blazing high in the sky, and I really didn't want to end up crispy fried.
Then I went into the water. It was pellucid, clear, and lovely, with satiny little waves and sunlight sparkling on every ripple. However . . . it was not quite as warm as we had fondly hoped. The Sparrowhawk's teeth started chattering after just a few minutes, and he had to go ashore and sit in the sun to warm up. I stayed in for quite awhile, and then came out for a bit to warm up and make sure the Sparrowhawk wasn't hypothermic, and then went back in again. It was absolutely delightful. We would have stayed longer, but the Sparrowhawk remembered he had to get to the pharmacy before 8 to refill a prescription. He made it with minutes to spare. What a nice day! I feel renewed, as always, by flinging myself into the arms of my darling lake.
We didn't take any of our usual hikes. We just went straight to the beach and walked down far enough to be masters of all we surveyed. People gather in front of the beach house with their umbrellas and music and cabanas and volleyball games and kites. But if you want solitude, all you have to do is walk for a few minutes, and there you are. We took the beach umbrella, and the Sparrowhawk took a folding chair. We sat in the shade and read and talked to give the sunscreen time to soak in. I NEVER do this. I always plunge immediately into the water. But today I decided to do the right thing, because the sun was blazing high in the sky, and I really didn't want to end up crispy fried.
Then I went into the water. It was pellucid, clear, and lovely, with satiny little waves and sunlight sparkling on every ripple. However . . . it was not quite as warm as we had fondly hoped. The Sparrowhawk's teeth started chattering after just a few minutes, and he had to go ashore and sit in the sun to warm up. I stayed in for quite awhile, and then came out for a bit to warm up and make sure the Sparrowhawk wasn't hypothermic, and then went back in again. It was absolutely delightful. We would have stayed longer, but the Sparrowhawk remembered he had to get to the pharmacy before 8 to refill a prescription. He made it with minutes to spare. What a nice day! I feel renewed, as always, by flinging myself into the arms of my darling lake.
