The coast has always been ours. She's a Florida girl by birth, raised between the warm tranquility of Gulf Coast beaches and the raucous waves of the mighty Atlantic. Some of her very first steps were in the white sands of Sanibel. Now living across the Gulf in Texas, the murky waters of Galveston call us home like the proverbial moth to flame. Like me, being raised on the Connecticut coast, the beach is our soul soother. No matter the weather, our feet hit the sand in search of inspiration and rejuvenation.
As much as Kev and I struggle with our empty nest, Emily is having a difficult adjustment to life outside the nest. College classes, autonomy, and living 300 miles away is taxing and Emily's mind hit overload in recent days. So this weekend she made the trek home and we immediately hit the shore.
Walking in the waves, picking at half torn shells washing ashore, the worldly woes fall away. There is no need for words, no need to hash out life's problems. Only the need to be remains.
On the beach words are useless. We both see the dolphins playing in the wake, the gulls wading patiently. We both understand the beauty of this landscape.
To interpret it verbally removes its magic. So we stand together absorbing the world, healing in its simple complexity.
These are the days I treasure. Watching Emily grow into her own reasoning. I see so much of Kev in her, and so much of myself. And though there are essays of logical advice I want to give her I know this is my time to be still. To just be there as she figures it out for herself. Hoping she will take flight. Knowing she will soar.
LOVE & SOUL WALKING
