Silence Oh. I have been running away from you
You have been my guidance, to eternal peace it's true
When the words play the game of life, on the sandy beaches of mind
She gave me the strength to fly away like a wind for a cloud in the sky
Why you should visit the beach Reason 1: Because it takes courage to look at the sky.
For an ordinary man, or a woman, it takes courage to look at the sky. Remember when we were kids, there was never a day that we did not spot an eagle or a cloud. Now, when we are pressed in between our work and responsibilities there is never a time to look at the sky. But the beach, at the beach you even do not have to look at the sky. The sky meets the ocean at the horizon, even if your neck is fixed with a stable gaze parallel to the ground, you would be able to see the sky and the clouds. Often, I find without an effort the eyes start to drift towards the sky looking for those lost clouds.
Reason 2: Watching the waves.
It is fun to watch the waves. Do not believe me? I have written a whole article on watching the waves and learning life lessons from this. However, even without life lessons you can just watch the waves. Longer you look at them you will notice they convey the same message as drifting clouds up above. Life is a buoy on a wave. It ups and downs with happiness. Memories fade away like footsteps of strangers on the beach. If you would come back tomorrow even the sandcastles would not be there. I still do feel like a kid playing on the beach, making castles- real ones, only hoping that they would not wash away with time.
Reason 3: End of the land.
If you want to run away from life, you should run away either into a library or to the beach. If you run into a library, you would improve your vocabulary and come out as a poet one day. If you run away to the beach like when the forest gump did, you would learn the lesson of life. You will learn the lesson of life that there is no place to run away. Nobody lives in the sea, not for long. So, there you will have to turn back. At the beach, you can feel all your problems, all your memories are just behind, on the land. You are at the edge, at the unknown future. Spend some time there, and it will clear your head. It will make you just a little bit wiser a man when you return to your problems back again.
Reason 4: Plenty of life.
On a busy Sunday, there would be plenty of people, at the beach. You may not seek this company, but I am sure you will still find a peaceful corner. Even if you did not, you can just stay at a one place and watch. You will start to notice, the people, they come and go, come and go like ants. You will start to notice, the sea, remains the same, the sandy beach remains the same, and you and the sky remains the same. There you will find peace, when you are a constant, not a variable in the picture.
Do you know who else will be there on the beach?
Crabs. Plenty of them. So, truly speaking you can never be alone on a beach. You will have to share the beach with plenty of other life, human or not. If you are an animal lover, you may find many both in the water and on the sand. It might make you smile, a crab crawling out fast before the next waves hit, or spotting a fish in the shallow water. You do not have to do snorkeling or diving, to see life as it is. A pair of good eyes and a childish curiosity is handy.
Reason 5: Golden hour rush
Sun is soft, when it just pops up from the far horizon, in the early morning hours. Just like a little child, who smiles and dance innocently, the sun would play some time until it passes into teenage times and into the youth at noon. Like the miracle of life, just to be soft again in the evening, before it hides from our sight. Again, at the end of its death, the sun would be soft, clam and be innocent like a child, forgetting all the havoc it played when it was a bright silver star in midday.
Take your time to go through all of it, never in a rush to leave, otherwise you will miss it.
Reason 6: natural fan - the breeze
The wind at the beach is a natural fan. You can fly a kite even if it is not meant for flying. However, what I like most is how it plays on my face and the body. The wind will touch your face like it does touch on your dog, when it peeps out from the window when you drive it to the wet! Did you see the smile on the eyes of the dog? You really do not have to jump from a 1000m cliff, to feel the breeze, risking your life. At the beach, the feeling would be provided even if you are stationary with zero risk. Try it next time, and smile to yourself when it tosses your hair.
Reason 7: natural mindfulness
Just like the breeze, the mindfulness is natural on places like beach. Just like James Clear claims in his TEDx talks, changing your environment changes our habits. One thing I noticed when I am at the beach is there is no place in mind, for any hazy thoughts. Just like the ships clearly visible on the horizon, each thought which appears in mind beach is clearly visible when I am at the beach. It has nothing to do with my effort. Because I never try to be mindful at the beach. So, it must be natural. It must be nature doing it. So, if you are finding difficult to start on mindfulness awareness, I suggest try the beach on your next vacation. Or this afternoon if you are close by.
That concludes my 7 reasons why you should visit the beach. What are yours?
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