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Tuesday, June 23, 2015

A Perfect Day


A Perfect Day
 

The Cranky Old Man is down on the Jersey Shore.  Our home for the next three weeks is a little two bed room, nothing fancy unit off a garage.  The rooms are small, the bed uncomfortable, and yet it doesn’t get much better.

Today was a beautiful summery day. The water warm, warm enough for this old man to take several dips in the ocean for maybe the first time in thirty years as early as in June.  After showering, Mrs. Cranky and I took the step-boy and his girl friend to dinner at an obscenely expensive wonderful dinner.  After dinner Mrs. C left for a wake of a relative of a relative who passed away too early.  Mrs. C is Catholic and goes to any wake of anyone she knows or is a friend or a relative of anyone she knows.

The Cranky Old Man stayed home.

I went to the beach which is about twenty yards from the tiny home we rent every year.

One of the nice things about getting old is you appreciate things so much.  It was a beautiful night on the beach tonight; maybe as beautiful as a night on the beach can be.  A few years ago Hurricane Sandy rolled in and this same beach was a war zone.  Homes were lost, people’s lives were turned topsy turvey.

Tonight the ocean was calm, the air warm and refreshing.  I sat on a bench with the last glass of a bottle of pinot grigio and a good cigar that my son-in-law had given me.

I reflected on life as I watched life on the beach.  I watched the seagulls and the shore birds, and was glad that their hard life was not mine.  I watched two Ospreys hunting for fish and thought how their success or failure meant the very existence of their young back home in their nest.  It is much nicer to be on a bench with a glass of wine and a good cigar than to be either of these beautiful birds working for survival.

I watched a young dad surf fishing with his five year old son.  The son was so excited to be fishing and wanted so bad to catch a fish.  He thought he had a bite at every bump his line took from the movement of the tide.  He continually reeled in his line only to find there was no fish, and his dad patiently cast his bait back into the ocean for his young son.  I thought how even though this young boy would probably not catch a fish he would remember this night with his dad for the rest of his life.  Catching a fish was nothing for this little boy compared to the life or death importance catching a fish was to the osprey.  

There is so much evil in this world.  There are so many people who live lives of desperation much the same as the patient ospreys.

I know I am one of the lucky ones.  I know I should do more to help others less fortunate.  I should probably feel guilty for not sacrificing, for not giving up some of what I have and to be more of a giver than a taker.  I have worked hard for what I have, but I have had more advantages than most.  Simply being born in this wonderful country has given me more advantages than ninety-nine percent of every human ever born, even more, if you think about it, than princes and kings of years gone by.

I’ve had my bumps in life, and there are for sure more to come. 

At least on this day, this perfect day on the Jersey Shore, I appreciate and thank God for what I do have.

22 comments:

  1. It does sound like a very nice place to be spending a few weeks! It is always good too to stop and think and be grateful for how incredibly blessed we are living in this country. Enjoy your time there!

    betty

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  2. It's a wise man who knows how fortunate he is, and you are a wise man.

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  3. 20 yards from the beach!! I'm a little envious here. That's a lie. I'm a LOT envious here.

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  4. It's great just to have an opportunity to sit back and reflect.

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  5. What a beautiful post! Nothing makes a person more appreciative than a beautiful day enjoying nature. Have a great vacation.

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  6. One of the grear things about being 'of s certain age' is acquiring the wisdom of being able to sit back and reflect and be in the moment with our surroundings. Days like you describe are always to be treasured. ..

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  7. you brought tears to my eyes, joe. i often have to remind myself of all the blessings i have been given and earned, too. so many, even in this country, struggle with so much less, barely making it day-to-day. people in other countries live in dire conditions, war, poverty, horror. we forget how wonderful america the beautiful truly is, even with its own troubles.

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  8. But you did work hard and are thankful to have a beach and a view and a cigar to enjoy them by, so, no apologies. Get on with it.

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  9. I am as fortunate as you are Joe and I am thankful for that each and every day. What a lovely reminder.

    Enjoy your Jersey Shore. ☺

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  10. Nothing quite like the ocean to put our lives in perspective. It can make wrinkles dissolve and smiles become permanent. Enjoy being un-cranky--it is good for you.

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  11. Hi joe, texwisgirl sent me over, she knew I would enjoy this entry and boy was she right. I have lived my entire life at the jersey shore. I have been to all the magnificent beaches we call home. On Saturday I walked along the shores in spring lake and ocean grove. There were clouds and the air was misty, my favorite time to visit. Last week we were in cape may.

    You have described my beloved home perfectly, your emotions made my heart smile. I think we could all appreciate life and our advantages, just a little bit more!! But truthfully, I think your right on track!!

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  12. Beautifully said Joe. You are blessed.

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  13. There's nothin' quite like tallying of the things for which we are grateful to mellow us out.

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  14. Sounds wonderful--keep making us jealous.

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  15. Beautiful post. You're not as cranky as you claim to be.

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  16. The ocean mesmerizes me!!

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  17. I am writing you a prescription for a daily Pinot Grigio. Don't mind the fact that I have no authority to write prescriptions.

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  18. A lovely day, and some lovely realizations.

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  19. There's just nothing like a whiff of salt air, the soothing sound of waves, and the feel of warm sand between your toes to set things right with your life!

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  20. It sounds perfect to me to Joel. When I got drafted in 1971, I spent six months at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. During that time, I spent countless hours sitting alone at night on the beach there.
    There is nothing like an ocean breeze.
    I LOVED this post.
    R

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  21. I find that reflective times come more often these days. For me, it is refreshing, as well as a bit sad.

    A nice, warm post.

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