We had a great week last week at a tiny little cottage in Humarock. Ace had just finished a big, long-term paint job and needed a break, and this last minute opening came up for a tiny beachside cottage. So we jumped at it.
We stayed right on the beach in a sweet little old-style cottage, falling asleep and waking up to the crashing of the waves just outside our sliding screen door.
The days were sunny, but the water was a tad brisk...like -immediately numbing to the ankles! However, on our last day the wind shifted from off shore and miraculously the temperature of the water was actually okay, so we dove in. (Okay, I didn't dive in...I never do, even when it's bathwater!) My friend Pam, however, who lives down there and is a "Professional Beach Queen", does, indeed just 1, 2, 3 dive right in!... I guess if you're used to diving in on New Year's Day as she and her son regularly do, it's nothing to just hop in in July, no matter what the temps...especially when you can come right back out and immediately warm up in the hot sun again!
Ace had his own "Cairns Festival." As you can see with the photos, he spent some time (or, meditation, as he chose to call it), perfecting his rock stacking techniques. By the end, I was calling him "The Ace of Cairns." One couple stopped by the cottage and asked about them as they examined his examples that spread across the deck. They admitted to sneaking up a day earlier and checking them out, then headed back to their cottage to share with their family this "fun activity!" But, they somehow weren't as successful as Ace in their methods, so they came back to take a second look and learn some tips from the Master! I don't think they quite saw it as the meditative experience that the "Ace of Cairns" did, they seemed to be approaching it more from an Olympic event...who can build the tallest cairn?!
Our final night there we experienced one crash-bang-up thunder and lightning storm. For about a half hour we saw the storm moving toward us from the distance. Soon enough, lightning cracked all around us and thunder booms shook the tiny cottage. In the face of a storm like this, in a tiny little cottage, we felt pretty tiny too. At least we had the shelter of the little cottage to watch the show from and even as the power flickered on and off, we were in awe of it all.
Great walks every day, meditative cairn building, wonderful weather, relaxing beach time, glorious sunsets over the river, and the never-ending ocean right in front of us every day...ah, nothing like some time at the beach.
Nice piece. It captures the whole panoply of possibilities. More than that, it celebrates a simple and profound approach to getting away.
I love Ace's stone towers. I can see where the meditation flows from!
Posted by: Fitz | August 02, 2008 at 10:06 AM