Jiving in the Surf

At the beach you can follow the shifting of the tide from day to day. More than half an hour per day approximately. The interval between two high tides taking twelve hours. The curve of ebb and flow looks like a wave coming from yesterday going forward endlessly. As you can see on todays photo, on our beaches here the surf at low tide has a special attraction. With some good fresh sea breeze. While retiring the sea continues to tumble onto the shore with short falling strokes. It is a marvellous play to join in, this mutual push and pull, giving in and throwing back. A kind of jiving dance with a strong and softly moving partner. Not always, mind the sudden undercurrents, but for an experienced swimmer even on windy days, it’s a wonderful play to let yourself in, freely, carelessly.

Especially these youngsters and kids were thrilled to rock and bounce and splash and fall and float. On their arrival I had seen them running over the sands to the sea and I had almost forgotten them, when turning around, I saw their jumpy joy in the glittering backlit. I felt this was going to be my Blip for today. The scenery was not chosen on purpose, but found by sheer luck, while I was in fact already on my way back. It was an accidental “view over my shoulder”. I like to do that while walking: looking around, back and forth. Especially being on the watch for Terns and Cormorants. Or, if ever again, that Seal popping up suddenly. Oh, it has been such a long time ago, that I met them here…In fact since I made my first entrance on this Journal! Gosh, that’s nearly too long ago to remember, that Winter afternoon in January: a seal stranded at low tide...We are not going to look back here!

I was only telling about my looking around watching for some unexpected surprise - a "view over my shoulder”. What you do when you and your loved one go different ways, separate for a short while. Don’t turn it into a personal habit of nostalgia, I know... But this afternoon I was not walking through the deepest darkness, like Orpheus...It was bright, the sea was a bit rough and splendid for a swim, the west wind a bit chilly and that made me long for a hot tea on the balcony.