Coastline Treasures

While taking a drive down the California coast to San Diego I could see the large Mission Bay Harbor.  What a gorgeous day, clear skies, winds blowing, and the harbor filled with sailboats.  It was breath taking, as I don’t remember ever seeing that many sailboats in one place.  We pulled over just to get a better view. The bay was filled with these beautiful boats just gliding across the waters, or so it appeared.

Mesmerized by these small sailing vessels, we drove to the docks where there were dozens of boats.  Some were smaller, some taller, some with simple furnishings and others well decorated with nautical décor.  I couldn’t keep my eyes off them while walking among all the different kinds of vessels in awe as I have never experienced the open waters.  I dreamed of what it would feel like with the wind blowing in my face and being in the vastness of the ocean.  As I kept dreaming, I was planning on when I could make it a reality.

To this day, my grandmother hasn’t let me live it down. I’m referring to an incident from my childhood, when we drove over to Grandma’s house for Thanksgiving dinner. I was about 5 and had just finished stuffing my face with turkey with all the trimmings, corn, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. The adults were understandably sluggish after this bountiful feast, and so they failed to notice when I slipped away from the table and went to look at the glass animal figurines on a high shelf in the living room.

Moments later, the clatter from a few rooms over was almost deafening, and my parents and relations came running with genuine concern. When they saw that I had managed to knock over every last knick-knack, my fate was sealed. I spent the rest of that evening helping with washing and drying the dishes. It doesn’t seem to matter how old my grandmother gets; she’ll always remember that holiday from long ago.