On a day when the wind chill is in the 30’s, it warms me to think of summer memories at the Jersey shore and the peacefulness that I feel when I watch the waves. Hopefully, you will enjoy them too. 🙂
Summer Beach Memories
Travel
Simplicity
In today’s world, it’s easy to get lost in the complexity of our society. Our life can become a whirling mass of chores, things, people, responsibilities and places, leaving us feeling lost and joyless.
When that happens, take some time to make yourself a top priority. Decide what really matters to you…your well-being and peaceful existence. Eliminate as many of the “shoulds” as possible, and let go of unnecessary things and people. Take some time to do what makes you happy and clears your mind. Relax and go with the flow of life; don’t complicate it with overthinking. When you return to what you absolutely have to do, you will approach it more lovingly because you’ve found time to nurture yourself and relax back into yourself.
My favorite go-to place locally is without a doubt, Cape May, NJ. The beauty of the ocean and rhythm of the waves relaxes me and helps to clear my head. The same is true to some extent for writing and genealogy although those activities can at times be bittersweet. 🙂
Do you have a special place or activity that allows you to relax and free yourself from your routine?
Along the Delaware Bay
I love to stare at waves rolling onto a sandy beach. The motion and soft sounds usually lull me into a state of deep relaxation. Here are two videos I took earlier in June this year in the area of Cape May, NJ. Perhaps you’d like to share a peaceful moment with me now…
The above video was take at Sunset Beach in Cape May Point. If you look closely you will see a sunken concrete ship, the S.S. Atlantus, at the end of the video. You can read more about the ship HERE.
This video is taken at the more rural Higbee Beach in North Cape May. The morning was cloudy and windy, but the waves and slight howling of the wind still did the trick for me. Here is a LINK to the colorful history of this beach.
A few more looks at waves…
Wordless Wednesday- Virginia Beach, VA
Photo Friday – Ascona
A lovely photo from a trip to southern Switzerland and beautiful Lake Maggiore in 2007. It is the second largest lake in Italy and the largest in southern Switzerland. Lake Maggiore and its shoreline are divided between the Italian regions of Piedmont and Lombardy and the Swiss canton of Ticino. The lake travels 41 miles and gets more beautiful with each twist and turn through the mountains. One of my favorite places on earth!
Photo Friday-Lake Lily
A Touch of Arizona
A change in landscape can do wonders for the spirit…especially when you spend a week in Arizona. I’ve lived in New Jersey my whole life. Even though I have traveled extensively in the United States, it had been years since I visited there. I came back from this Thanksgiving week trip, renewed and refreshed after feasting my eyes upon scenes such as the ones below.
I hope you enjoy the mini-vacation here, particularly if you are looking out the window at a snowstorm as I am right now!
Backyard view of Santa Catalina Mountains, afternoon and at sunset
       Out and about in Tuscon
In Tohono Chul Park, Tuscon
A day on Mount Lemmon
Pathways
After a recent trip to Cape May, NJ, I noticed that many of my favorite photos centered on this walkway from a Sunset Beach cottage to the Delaware Bay. Thinking back, I realized how I have always been drawn to photos of pathways.
Perhaps, the times I enjoy them the most are when I am examining my own life’s pathway. Following a new road can be exciting, scary, and wonderful. The uncertainty of it all can be very enticing. The opportunities it brings can be challenging and stressful. Nevertheless, there is one magnificent guarantee – it will bring change…change which is the driving force of life that frees us from stagnation and allows us to grow.
Waiting for Twilight
Those of you who have followed me for a while know that one of my favorite local places is Riverwinds, in West Deptford, NJ. It’s a place where I go to relax, think and renew my spirit as I stare at the Delaware River flowing by.
Across the river is the busy Philadelphia airport, far enough away that only occasionally are my thoughts interrupted by the sounds of a jet engine. Â In the last photo, Â the warm glow of sunset has faded, and night is descending on the city of Philadelphia as the lights begin to come on.
It’s important to have a go-to place when we need a little clarity in our lives. There’s nothing like sitting by the water to give life a little perspective (for me at least).
Photo Friday – Cannobio, Italy
Fond memories from 2007 of a little town on Lake Maggiore.