Henderson Beach State Park, Destin, Florida
I began my day doing laundry at 7:30am. Since there’s very little reason for us to care what time it is, we opted to stay on Eastern Time, even though where we are runs on Central which means they’re an hour earlier. Thus the 7:30am time. To those who live here, it was actually 6:30am. What can I say? I prefer getting my chores done early! 😊
After putting the clothes in the dryer, I took off for some solitude on the beach. It was perfect! Waves, a slight breeze, no one around. Sure, it was overcast, but that’s never bothered me. I like it!
As I began a time of praise and prayer, of course a song popped into my head. This time it was “Peace Be Still”. We used to sing it in our children’s choir when my aunt was the director. What a pleasant memory the Lord brought to mind!
Master, the tempest is raging, the billows are tossing high!
The sky is o’er shadowed with darkness, no shelter or help is nigh!
Carest Thou not that we perish? How canst Thou lie asleep,
when each moment so madly is threatning, a grave in the angry deep?
“The winds and the waves shall obey My will. Peace be still.
Whether the wrath of the storm-tossed sea
or demons, or men, or whatever may be.
No water can swallow the ship where lies
the Master of ocean and earth and skies.
They all shall sweetly obey My will. Peace be still, peace be still.
They all shall sweetly obey My will. Peace be still, peace be still.”
Master, the tumult is over, the winds and the waves at rest
Earth’s sun in the calm lake is mirrored, and heaven’s within my breast Linger, O blessed Redeemer, leave me alone no more
And with joy I shall make the blest harbor, and rest on the blissful shore
Chorus ~ In case you’re wondering, the lyrics are based on Mark 4:35-41
There were more verses, but these are all I could recall. It’s not the same without sharing the melody, but I have no idea how I could possibly accomplish that, outside of recording me singing it, and that’s not gonna happen. 😊
After some singing and remembering and praise, my mind turned to reflection.
As I watched the waves (much stronger today), they brought to mind life in general and how some waves are small and barely noticeable,
while others are large and crashing and can be overwhelming.
This is life. Filled with never ending waves – sometimes flat and completely calm, sometimes there are tiny irritations that are barely noticeable, at other times – in increasing amounts- they seem as if they will overtake us. In all this, those of us who know Christ are safely within His watchful care, no matter the size of the waves.
Our life is as fleeting as the footprints left by those who passed before me this morning. We spoke kindly to one another and smiled, but then they were gone; leaving only footprints behind and those only for a moment, before the waves washed all evidence of them away. But still these kind people left a mark on my heart. A moment in time. And now, because I choose to remember them, they will shape how I respond to others in future fleeting moments. We don’t know but that a smile and a “Good morning!” may shape the rest of someone’s day. Change the direction of their thoughts and feelings. Give them encouragement.
But even the prints behind me, in the relative safety of the dry sand will eventually be washed away by the ever encroaching waters of life. Eventually, they too will be washed away and forgotten. Just as we are. Very few of us are remembered past a couple of generations. Even those remembered are remembered for some great or noble (or ignoble) thing they did, not for the person themselves.
But lest we feel dismayed and useless or purposeless, we must remember that God created each of us for a reason – to bring glory to Him. Our lives matter in His tapestry of life. Each and every one matters as He desires none of us to be lost, and so He weaves us together so that we impact one another. While the back of a tapestry appears a gigantic mess, the front is beautiful and each thread important. We love because He loves. We care because He cares. We share joy because He gives joy. As we work and move in this life, whether we know it or not, we touch the lives of others. Oftentimes, we will never know how our lives have influenced others – good or bad – but we live to love and serve the Almighty Creator God. The source of our Salvation. The love of our lives.
Unfortunately(??) often my times of solitude reflection leave me a bit melancholic, longing for my heavenly home. So it is this morning. Filled with glorious praise, but also a sense of homesickness. Two opposing feelings, joined into one person. Only God can create that!
I returned to my now dry laundry and commenced with my domestic chore, before heading home to grab Blaine and head back out to the beach! We returned to the churning coast in shorts, bare feet . . . and jackets. 😊 Hey! The wind was quite cool and strong as you walked into it! The sound of the wind and the waves in our ears, almost deafening.
Look how the beach changed overnight.
This is about 1/4 of the sand dollar.
Can you just imagine how huge it must have been?!?!?
There’s the sun – – trying to shine
Blaine stole a piece of bread from a gull, then tore it up to share with everyone.
There are 4 pictures because there are things to notice about each one. : )
Salt spray!
For the first time, our glasses were covered by the time we left the beach.
Back home for lunch and then . . . . bikes! We haven’t had opportunity to ride for quite a while. We rode many of the places we’ve walked, only much much faster! 😊 I can tell you that my bum became numb! How do people bike for umpteen miles (or days)? It can’t be because I don’t have enough padding, so it must be that I have too much! Besides the 3 miles we’ve walked so far, we also biked several miles. Of course, it was flat. But half the time we were biking into the wind. Does biking count toward our daily mileage count? I think it should! By the way. It’s very difficult to take a picture with your phone while you’re riding a bike!
I’m feeling and beginning to look older. Can’t do much about the feeling, but the looking part? Blaine can help with that!
I have no idea why I look like this! Apprehension maybe??
Next up in our day was taking the coach to dump the tanks. We’ve discovered that we can go about 5 days before the gray tank is full – that’s any water you run down the drains. Everything except the toilets. If we stop washing dishes and showering, we could go a really long time!
Perfectly re-positioned in our site!
Dinner (grilled Fiesta Chicken and Mexican Rice and salad), another walk to the beach and that’s the end of another wonderfully blessed day!
TOTAL MILES: 3.5 + about 3 more biking. OK, I won’t count biking miles. ☹
Year to Date: 88
Daily Average: 3.26