I sit here on the couch in the living room of this charming little cottage my sister and I have rented to vacation with our three kids -- my one and her two. It's called Norah's Cottage and from the little shrine to her in this room, I gather that she was quite a woman. There's her nameplate from her desk, a set of keys, her recipe files and a collection of books that makes me believe she was studying life's great mystery: life itself.
Her two sons renovated this tiny place after her death and decorated it in the most whimsical and elegant style. We are in love with this tidy and compact home and this island. The beach is short walk down the road and up a walkway and once you rise above the dunes you look out onto this expanse of beach and ocean. It's breathtaking. You can watch the Pelicans fly over and every once in a while a brave soul parasailing comes flying by.
This vacation is perfect. There is no schedule. There is the occasion whining child. There is little to distract us from being at the beach and being with each other. Today, I slept until 10:30 a.m. Drank instant coffee on the front porch and then tugged on my swim suit and headed to the beach to join the rest of the family. I floated in the ocean for a long, long time just chatting with my sister and my daughter and playing with my nephews. Then I laid on the sand for a long time returning to the water when I became just a little too hot. When the others left to go back to the cottage, I stayed behind to enjoy the beach and contemplate life and its mysteries. And I reaffirmed that everything is just perfect in this moment and in this place. I am with the ones I love most in this world and everyone is safe and happy. What more is there?
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