It was my family's tradition (1960s-1970s), during the summer months, to spend a week vacationing by the excellent camp sites by the lakes of the many Arkansas State Parks in the Ozarks. Usually near Greers Ferry Lake (Shiloh Park, Heber Springs, Tumbling Shoals) - and Mountain Home's lakes (Norfork, Bull Shoals).
It was upon those protected waters that I learned to read the weather, fish, swim, and handle a boat.
Before I ever saw an ocean...I spent many nights reading a book (bought at a library book sale for less then $0.25) of historically factual accounts...of the exploits, adventures...and mis-adventures...of real pirates...from the 1600s-1800s.
My first encounter with an ocean...was upon the beaches of Florida's East Coast...probably around Jacksonville - while still not yet a teen. It was the summer that my family did a long vacation...driving from Arkansas to Florida...and making a circuit down the Atlantic side...all the way down to Key West, then back up the Gulf of Mexico side. This was in the days before private folks had GPS in their car - and before mobile phones - and I recall how we used maps prepared by a AAA travel service (which was called a "TripTik" - a folio of maps and travel guide information - with color highlighted routes).
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I distinctly remember my first view of the Atlantic...walking over a dune...and beholding the site of its massive majesty.
Other
distinctive memories from that trip...our visit to Key West...as well
as stops in Naples and and Pensacola - as well as visiting the
battleship USS Alabama - and the submarine (USS Drum) in Mobile, Alabama - on our way back to Arkansas.
Some years later (when I was 17) - my family spent a vacation visiting the Hawaiian islands...and I had a chance to go diving for the first time in Hanauma Bay.
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| (image source: Wikipedia.org) |
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| (image source: Wikipedia.org) |
These were all formative experiences...that imprinted upon my soul the Song of the Ocean...
Being near (or upon) the water has become my Rx for when I need to clear my head, think, rejuvenate, restore my soul, or replenish my mojo.
Mediating by moving water (whether a beach, or a river/stream/brook) is how I find my center...
After I have been away from the ocean for some time...the first breath of the crisp salty tang of the air - begins a molecular change in my body, mind, and soul.
The sound of seagulls is music to my ears.
I can usually find something beautiful in most any boat (although, there are exceptions...)
When my hand grasps the tiller or wheel - and I am making way to depart a harbor...there is a kind of freedom that swells in my heart...which I have never experienced anywhere on dry land.
After three days at sea...I enter a state of grace with the ocean...and my cares and worries fall away...
