salt flats, tide pools, birds, fish, dolphins, grasses, treasures
beachcombing
on the southern side of the entrance to Charleston Harbor,
north of the city on Folly Beach, South Carolina, USA
—
‘there’s peace in the pull of the tides.’
-author unknown
do your best even if you have no idea what you’re doing
—
my post today was inspired by my blogging/podcasting friend
Wynne Leon of Surprised By Joy –
https://wynneleon.com/2025/03/17/all-you-have-to-do-is-ask/
who wrote about her daughter finally getting into a class she was interested in, (glee club), and then wasn’t sure what it actually was, reminding me of my own experience in the arena of not knowing what I was getting into:
i was in high school and my best friend told me she was going to try out for our synchronized swimming team (that I didn’t even know we had). it sounded fun, looked easy, i’d seen it on tv, so i thought why not? i’ll give it a whirl.
the afternoon of the try out arrived and we jumped in the pool with everyone else, but as they went through some different moves and swim strokes, and the music began, it suddenly struck me:
I had neglected to figure in two important factors before jumping in:
as you might imagine, it did not go so well. it involved some water swallowing and inhaling, burning eyes, lots of thrashing and water slapping, nothing that could be construed as graceful, something really, really far from water ballet, and some spinning and jumping. there were no coordinating moves with anyone else, i was just trying to survive. needless to say, i did not become a member of the club, luckily for me, (and all). but i did learn something that day. it never hurts to try new things, but it’s usually best to have an idea what you’re about to try before going off the deep end or you’ll soon find yourself underwater.
—
‘I tried synchronized swimming, but felt, over time, i was just going through the motions.’
-dana gould
when all are watering the plants at the same time,
while facing each other,
what could possibly happen?
let’s do the probability math.
—
“be water, my friend.”
-bruce lee
off to the pacific ocean
outrigger canoeing
stop at a little beach
warm swim in the salty ocean water
short walk to a hidden waterfall
sit under the cool water
snack on fresh fruits
ending the day walking into a tiny beach bar
enjoying a costa rican cocktail of passion fruit and local sugar cane liquor
as the sun went down over the water
going to the river the morning after
for a boat ride through the mangroves
sharing space with
crocodiles, pelicans, egrets, herons, storks, white-faced monkeys, macaws
all of them protected and safe.
“water is the driving force of all nature.”
-leonardo da vinci
looking into the river on a bright day in may
—
“time and reflection change the sight little by little ’till we come to understand.”
-paul cezanne
—
argo park, huron river, ann arbor, michigan, usa – 2023
Elvis Francois was working on his boat in St. Maarten in December when he accidentally started drifting out to sea. The weather had suddenly changed, and he said in a video released by the Colombian Navy, who rescued him, that he had lost his ability to navigate.
“I tried to [go] back to port, but I lost track because it took me a while to mount the sail and fix the sail,” he said. “…I call my friends, my coworkers. They tried to contact me, but they lost service. There was nothing else I could do than sit down and wait.”
He wrote out the word “help” on the back of his boat, and he was eventually rescued – after 24 days with nothing but “a bottle of ketchup…garlic powder and Maggi [soup].”
The navy said that officers took Francois to the Port of Cartagena to receive medical care and that he was “found to be in good health.” While there, they also started the necessary actions to help him return home.
“We’re setting this message adrift into the sea of the internet, because if anyone can help us find him, it’s you,” the company said. “If you or anyone you know can help us get in contact with Elvis Francois, please drop us a DM.”
In a statement to CBS News on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Heinz said that they want to “gift” Elvis a “new state-of-the-art boat.” That boat, they said, will be “equipped with full navigational technology to avoid another disaster in the future.” It’s currently an international effort, with Heinz markets “around the world” getting involved. “We’re hoping to spread the word far and wide so Heinz can finally gift the new boat to Elvis,” the company said.
—
“for whatever we lose (like a you or a me), it’s always our self we find in the sea.”
-e.e. cummings
—
source credit: liz cohen, cbs news
the tiny drinking fountain in our room
had been shut off for over 2 years
as a precautionary measure due to covid.
this year
one kinder, a young 3
decided he was going to fix it
fidgeting with it every day
without any tools
looking under it and all around it
pushing the button
day after day
he never stopped trying
nothing happened
until
one day we came in
noticed it was working
(perhaps a building elf had stopped by after school)
i took our little fixer over to see it
showed him the water coming out
told him he must have finally fixed it!
hard to imagine
the look of shock and joy on his face
to see it working
after all of his hard work
and refusal to give up
the class now celebrates him as a hero
and use the fountain every day
he proudly checks on it often
his face still amazed every time.
—
“i’m good at figuring out how things work, but I don’t know how this happened.”
-nora roberts, the collector
beautiful and enlightening experience
kayaking through detroit’s canals
that i never knew existed
with detroit river sports
then paddling into the detroit river
bounded on either side by the united states and canada
learning history and tales of
bootlegging, river islands, mansions, auto barons, inventors, and boatmen
finishing with a lovely relaxed dinner
canal side
at coriander kitchen and farm
fresh farm to table fare
all in the heart of the city.
—
“if there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.”
-loren eiseley
Hunger Stone :
Recent droughts in Europe once again made visible the “Hunger Stones” in some Czech and German rivers.
These stones were used to mark desperately low river levels that would forecast famines.
This one, in the Elbe river, is from 1616 and says: “If you see me, cry.”
—
“when the well is dry, we will know the worth of water.”
-benjamin franklin
—
credits: history review
midsummer
—
“i saw the sea put on her dress of midsummer loveliness…
i heard the wind call out and say,
get up my dear, it is today!”
-rachel field
I didn't have my glasses on.... 