Monday 4 January 2010

Life's simple pleasures

Life's simple pleasures: they're everywhere. They can mean the difference between a good day (week/month/year) and a bad one. It could be admiring a perfectly formed shell, or enjoying an unexpected strip of colour on a building, or taking a deep breath near a lavender bush. It's just as easy to enjoy tiny experiences like this each day as it is to miss them altogether. When faced with a choice, I know which I'd prefer.

After dropping off some post today, I decided to walk back via the Petone Foreshore. We had gone for a drive to Days Bay beach on New Year's Day, but the strong wind kept the temperature down and cut our visit short. It's also very windy today, but much warmer. The sea beckoned; the water was surprisingly warm and my shoes were quickly in my hands. I thought about goal #53 - Walk in the water with sand between my toes ... and so, for ten glorious minutes, I walked along the foreshore and indulged in one of the simplest pleasures life can offer.

I'm not a beach babe by any measure, but I love being near the sea. I have almost always lived very close to the ocean and miss the dynamics of the waves when I have been inland for too long. I'll never forget how a kind couple I was staying with in northern California ten years ago were determined to take me on a 3-4 hour drive to show me the Pacific Ocean at Carmel and Monterey. They certainly are beautiful spots; I didn't have the heart to tell them that I've spent most of my life living within a few minutes of the other side of this amazing ocean.

Perhaps having parents descending from two tiny islands, as well as being brought up within minutes of the ocean, has meant that the sea is something I'll always yearn for? I hope so.

2 comments:

donna said...

That is one of those perfect simple pleasures! And Yay for accomplishing another goal!

~JarieLyn~ said...

My simple pleasure today was watching my dog wag her tail while she hung her head out the car window as I drove her around the neighborhood.