We came home from the last dinner out of our visit to Seacrest Beach to find storms heading our way over the ocean, storms that would roar through the night with the majestic fury of lightning streaking the sky and hugely booming thunder. We both got up in the wee hours of the morning to watch the lightning flash across the ocean- storms are always more impressive over the water. It made for a fitful night’s sleep, but beautiful nonetheless. The glory of Mother Nature.
The morning after…
It is amazing how fast time flies when we are at the beach; it seems we just got here and it’s already time to head back to Birmingham. It’s okay, though, as we soaked up as much sun, ocean, and relaxation as we could in the three full days that we were here. We were grateful that the stars aligned and allowed us this window of time for a badly-needed opportunity to reboot on many levels.
I’ve decided that of all the gifts that this trip has brought to me, the greatest- aside from quality time with Dan- has been to help me cross the divide mentally from recovering patient back to normal, healthy Denise again. While I know that I still have internal healing to do from surgery and some physical restrictions to follow for a while yet, I feel really good for the first time in ages. I hadn’t realized how much the tumor was affecting me, and now that ‘George’ is gone, I understand what so many fellow HysterSisters meant when they talked about a new lease on life after hysterectomy surgery. I am thrilled at the prospect of getting healthier and stronger every single day now, and I have several goals in mind to help better myself. I love that Life gives us opportunities to learn and grow with everything put in our path, often especially the more difficult things. I am doing my best to be open to those lessons as they come.
The beach is often the great healer for me in many ways, and I know that Dan feels the same about our visits to Mother Ocean. Feeling my toes in the powdery white sand, the roar of the waves beating against the shore, that special breeze that only the ocean can have…it never fails to calm me and help me think through things with more clarity. The job now is to take that peace home with me and channel it when the inevitable times of stress come our way.
Now it’s time to return home to the real world. Instead of lazy days spent staring at the ocean with the only responsibility being to choose where we want to go have dinner or what cocktail to have, we’re heading home to a sick dog (we think Coops ate something disgusting after we left town), Dan has his crazy-busy ‘100 shows in 100 days’ to face before he retires at the end of August, and I have a big presentation to work on, along with a huge amount of practicing to do for a performance at ClarinetFest and upcoming recitals and recording sessions. I am also anxiously awaiting the publication of my book…sort of like waiting for Christmas. All good things (except for the sick dog). We love our busy lives, but the importance of rest and the occasional change of scenery are so important in balancing out our workaday selves. ‘All work and no play’ and all that.
And so, thank you, Mother Ocean, for once again working your magic on us. We are carrying you home in our hearts and minds, and no doubt, in our very souls. Until next time.
The View from Here 