The Salt Life

The Salt Life

Just over a year ago, if you had asked me about the ocean, I was limited to what I remember from my cruises and Florida vacations, which were few. I lived in a state surrounded by gorgeous lakes. Lake-life is what I knew. As the magnet my mom found me states: Great Lakes, Unsalted and Shark Free!

Now I live at 'the oceanfront' of Virginia Beach. Who would've thought this Midwesterner girl who drank pop (especially Vernors), went to Canada on field trips, used a doorwall, and worked her entire adult career in Detroit (the Motor City) would wind up living 6 blocks from the Atlantic? Well it surely wasn't me but I've learned a lot in my first year here and I have no regrets! Every picture I'm going to share with you today was taken by me during my first year here in Virginia.

#1 - The Ocean Waves Never End

There is something about the rhythm of ocean waves that make you feel calm and at ease. I find there is no way to be anxious if you're sitting on the beach and simply listening to the waves roll and crash against the shore. This is God's natural 'sound machine' on repeat. I find my heart rate regulates, my breathing becomes slower and deeper, and I can literally get lost in the moment (or hours....).

#2 Sunrises Over the Ocean Are Breathtaking

I come from Michigan, a state that is known for their sunsets. Utterly gorgeous and colorful pictures drawn on the sky almost nightly. Then I moved to the Atlantic. We are lucky to get a decent sunset here but oh my word do we get sunrises! It is almost impossible to capture the true beauty as you watch over the ocean and the sky transitions from dark to dawn to full sun. The purples, blues, pinks, oranges, yellows, and every other color God could imagine dance across the sky and change minute to minute. It is a site to see and every time you attend God's morning movie, it changes!

#3 Seashell Collecting Is Deep

When I first moved here, I was blessed to be taken in by a handful of ER nurses. (Trust me, this is a blessing - us ER ladies are not an easy group to break into!) They invited me to their beach day and then is when I learned about seashell hunting. I was getting excited over clam shells - oh my did I have a lot to learn! As I spent my first summer gleaning from the masters in shell hunting, I found the activity not only required some skill (and a lot of luck) but patient, perseverance, respect, and gratitude. There are days fully intact conchs and sand dollars will literally roll out at your feet and there are days you're the one getting rolled by the waves for nothing.

Tracy, my fellow ER coworker and seashell hunting master, said this recently in a Facebook post: 

"I think the reason I like shell hunting so much is that it teaches so many things: 

Appreciation: small things in life can bring so much happiness.

Patience: what you are meant to have will come to you in time.

Determination: sometimes you have to work hard for the good things in life.

Optimism: maybe today you are empty handed, but there is always tomorrow.

And there is no greater feeling of peace than when you are surrounded by the beauty of nature."

#4 Dolphins Are Magical

If you have never had the honor of witnessing these amazing creatures in their natural habitat, you have not yet been privy to one of God's most magical creatures. The first time I spotted dolphins at the beach, I literally squealed with delight. All I could spot where the fins of a family of dolphins off in the distance, going in and out of the water so gracefully, barely breaking the surface. I watched with complete attention, guessing where they would show up next on the horizon. Little did I know as the waters began to warm, they would venture closer and closer to the shoreline. The closer they came, the louder their conversations became. You can listen to them talk to each other, almost giddy in their tone. I've been honored to witness this on several occasions now and am awestruck every time. I do believe dolphins make the list of natural ocean events that will stop both tourists and locals in their tracks every time.

#5 Full Moons Rising Over the Atlantic are Unbelievable

As an ER nurse, I have the ultimate respect for full moons. I know the impact they have on society in general and can turn a shift of calm into complete chaos. But never had I been blessed to see such a site as a full moon rising over the ocean. As if the sunrise wasn't already gorgeous enough, this was unreal. We have gorgeous full moons in Michigan but never anything like this. The amount of light the moon reflects off the water is absolutely stunning. To realize it has so much power, all you have to do is watch the tides. Just before a large full moon, the tides change drastically. You suddenly can walk 50 feet out into the water and stay ankle deep where as the day before you would've been in over your head. The waves come together in different directions and the usually unseen sandy ocean floor becomes visible. It's a phenomena that I am still floored by every time it happens.

So at the end of the day, these are my most important lessons learned living by the ocean. They are all things I have no control over and yet I love them. It is amazing for someone who struggles with control and anxiety to admit this. There is something about the ocean, it's waves, tides, shells, and wild-life, that just draw you in. It calms you deep on the inside. It promotes complete relaxation. It's as if your body's functions begin to correlate with the ocean's rhythm. It also promotes activity, time in the sun, and sanity. There is nothing better after a long ER shift than taking a deep breath of salt air and having sandy feet!