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)