Nantasket in November
People walking the beach don’t organize themselves like they do on the road when driving, or when they’re swimming laps in a pool, which is part of the reason I like to do it. There are no up and down lanes or one-way rules to follow. Some people walk determinedly, while others seem to wander. I can zigzag from dry sand to the shore and back, stop to pick up an iridescent shell, or examine a washed-up lobster trap.
Up near the shoreline, the sand is smooth and looks polished. If I hang my head down and look at my feet as I walk, I can see clouds in its shine. Against the hypnotic sound of the surf going in and out, it’s easy to imagine that I’m walking in the sky. I like the way the glistening shore spreads out like a clean slate in front of me.
It’s feeding time and sea gulls are dropping clams to the ground to crack them open. When they make contact with the ground it sounds like Johnny Damon hitting one out of Fenway Park, so much so that I almost have to look to see what base he made it to. Because they’re busy eating, the gulls aren’t squawking as much as they usually do. Occasionally, one will squawk and others feel they have to follow suit. Suddenly, a clam drops from the sky, less than 6 feet away from me, and I imagine what it would be like to visit an emergency room for a clam on the head injury.
From a distance I watch a couple walking. Because the sun is so low in the sky, they look like silhouettes walking on glass. Someone else is scouring through sand with a metal detector, looking for coins or other buried treasure.
I always feel rich when I’m on the beach, and I wonder, as I breathe in the salty sea air and tuck my turquoise blue scarf into my jacket, what else could I ask for? A sunset?
Here it comes…
…And there it goes.
November 7th, 2005 9:56 am
Your description was lovely. I felt as if I was walking the beach beside you.
November 7th, 2005 10:20 am
I love the beach. I am so lucky to live by the ocean. Thanks for your description, I too, felt like I was walking with you.
November 7th, 2005 11:56 am
beautiful post, equally beautiful photo 🙂
November 7th, 2005 3:06 pm
Love the beach, too, Coleen! So very peaceful….
I always feel like I’m in another city! Love that photograph!
So sorry about your computer…the ‘Wizard’ that took mine away last last week could not even get onto the hard drivew..everyhthing lost!!! But luckily I had most of my important documents saved to floppy’s! Hope you are able to recover your stuff!
November 7th, 2005 3:07 pm
Just fixed the URL on your blog!
November 7th, 2005 3:08 pm
I am FEEBLE!!
Now it’s fixed!
November 7th, 2005 3:14 pm
It sounds absolutely lovely!
I’m here from Michele’s today. Hi!
November 7th, 2005 4:29 pm
The beach is such therapy! Hey…I never knew that the gulls dropped clams from so high. I loved how you described it in baseball terms. I wonder if anyone has been knocked silly by a dropping clam?
November 7th, 2005 7:09 pm
Clam-injury would make for a great story at family gatherings. Instead of back in ‘Nam, it would be back in clam…
November 7th, 2005 7:33 pm
Husband or no husband. First Wife or no First Wife. I’d like to take a walk on the beach with you.
November 7th, 2005 8:43 pm
I enjoy your writing? Are you at the beach now, or writing from memory? I’ve just posted another Honduras essay.
November 7th, 2005 8:46 pm
A very nice word picture, Colleen. I have not been to the beach this year, so it was nice to go in my mind.
November 7th, 2005 10:37 pm
Nice story. I’ve never been on a beach north of Virginia and had no idea that gulls dropped clams to open them. But now, not only do I know that they do, I have a very good idea of what it sounds like. Thanks.
November 8th, 2005 2:29 am
Wonderful story, wonderful beach. I was thinking of driving down to the beach here and walking around in the cool fall air, but the temps went back up into the 80’s so that is on hold. The next brisk cold front maybe. We don’t have gulls and clams here but plenty of squawking as they feed on crumbs.
November 8th, 2005 5:39 am
I’m not into the beach much. I prefer the lake. Both is with in driving distance. When I was a teen I would drive down to the beach as an escape. I wouldnt do it like everyone else. I’d wait till the middle of the night and drive so I could ride the ferry in peace and watch the waves and listen to them instead of 100 people going awww look and the squawking birds..I havent been in 3 years and another 3 before that. I miss the escape..
November 8th, 2005 7:55 am
Ahhhh, the wonders of the sea. Being there literally touches all of our five senses. I wonder if that is why once it is tasted, felt, smelled, seen, heard, it goes right to your bones?
Kathy, who has the sea in her bones too.
November 8th, 2005 10:00 pm
lovely description! the beach is my relaxation area of choice. btw, i really like your photos too.
November 9th, 2005 10:41 pm
Gorgeous shot and descriptions. This brings me back to Dorchester Bay. I was surprised to find that the beach at Daytona has traffic lanes (10 mph speed limit).
The beach was great solace to me when my mother was hospitalized. Nowadays when I go down to the sea (not as accessible as when I lived in Dorchester), I say, “Hello, old friend.”
May 30th, 2012 10:27 pm
[…] 7. People walking the beach don’t organize themselves like they do on the road when driving, or when they’re swimming laps in a pool, which is part of the reason I like to do it. There are no up and down lanes or one-way rules to follow. Some people walk determinedly, while others seem to wander. Read more of my Nantasket in November post HERE. […]