Monday, August 27, 2007

The Warmth of the Sun

Today was one of those days you just want to hold on to. I was on my way home from work when my wife called me and said that she and the girls were at the beach. She told me it was an absolutely beautiful beach day and that I must come down and join them for dinner. I had started work at 5:00 a.m. and I was a little tired, but then I remembered that the girls were headed back to school next week and that summer was fleeting.

I stopped home, changed into my bathing suit, threw my beach chair in the car and headed to Subway to pick up some subs. When I got to the beach we had our impromptu picnic dinner on our blanket and then my wife and I settled in with our books, while the girls finished their summer reading assignments (better late than never--procrastination runs in the family!). We each took turns wading in the surf as schools of tiny fish swam around our legs. It was so nice out, my wife suggested that we stay and watch the sunset. The girls were dancing on the sand as the sun sank behind them. I wished I had a camera, then I remembered I did...on my cell phone. I snapped this shot.

Once the sun had set, we packed up our belongings and then slowly walked to the parking lot...each wishing to hold on to the moment just a little longer. I started thinking about how quickly the summer was slipping away and Brian Wilson's heartbreaking falsetto began playing in the back of my head:


What good is the dawn
That grows into day
The sunset at night
Or living this way


Still I have the warmth of the sun
(Warmth of the sun)
Within me at night
(Within me at night)

7 comments:

  1. If you are looking for me tomorrow...this is where I'll be. I'm not ready for summer to end yet!!!

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  2. we wern't dancing we were chasing each other.

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  3. Your story and picture makes me want to go to the beach! Sounds like a good time was had by all...wish I could have been there!

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  4. nh kids: we think c was looking for a, the lost goose

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  5. Great post Bobby. You know school starts so early down here in GA that my seasonal clock gets all screwed up. In the NE, there is a real sense of seasonal change about this time of year that coincides perfectly with school opening. There's no stringing it out up there. When school starts, summer is over. Yeah, you might get a little string of warm temps, but in a week or two, the glorious season of fall will be upon you and the rest of us transplants will be that much more homesick. Heaven on earth for me is fall in the Hudson Valley. I think I'll book my tickets now...

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  6. Beautiful post. to me the end of summer means the mend of Rye Playland!

    j.k.

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  7. The sunset is great! Glad you were able to enjoy it with your family!

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