fI watch the sun rise over the ocean a lot but rarely do I get to do it 17,000 feet in the air. Flying out of Jacksonville the pilot hugs the coast of Florida. It is black when we take off and the stars of the Milky Way are brilliant in their display. I stare out of the window trying to pick out the cities that we are flying over. St. Augustine. Daytona.
Then it begins. The ocean goes on forever and is black and brooding. Then a hint of pink appears on the horizon thin and distant. I watch it as it turns redder and redder. The black sky turns into the deepest of blues with a growing red line over a black sea that remains asleep.
I can recognize the shoreline easily now and see waves that appear to be miles long softly kissing the beach. The ocean turns from black to gray. A haze of yellow begins to erupt from the red line. The dark blue sky becomes muted. Clouds appear that are almost as gray as the sea and I can’t help but think that they are still asleep but will wake soon.
The yellow haze begins to fade and the deep red line becomes this mixture of colors that reach upward becoming one with the blue sky. White clouds roll in and the ocean turns green. And I feel blessed to witness the birth of a day.
Eventually this one took me back to St. Martin which I love. A day of travel by yourself can leave you melancholy so I was ready for action. After immigration was finally convinced that I would eventually leave the island, I was allowed in.
Because of a lengthy delay, I’d missed my ride so I met Nate, the cab driver. As we made our way to the other side of the island, he happily sang Christmas songs that were blaring from the radio.
“Hey Nate, it’s kind of early for Christmas isn’t it?”
Naw Mon,” he replied with a smile. “It starts Halloween here.”
Alright then. Nate pulled into the lone grocery store still open so that I could pick up provisions. Inside children of all colors and sizes were dressed in costumes, mostly ghosts and devils. As I made my way up and down the aisles, they would come and smile at me and hand ME a piece of candy. One little boy dressed as Superman screamed bloody murder every time he saw one. It is hard not to love it here.
I called my Mom to tell her that I was safe and she told me that I was in the New York Times Book Review. It seems that my book Tour of Homes is listed as one of the best books about Savannah by a local author. Cool Beans!
It didn’t take me long to unpack the storage bin and arrange the room. As I did so Paul and Nancy were knocking on my door. They are friends from Canada and were dressed as Jokers on the card. They told me that they had a place reserved for me at their table for the big Halloween party. It is damn nice to be welcomed and know that you have been anticipated.
So I stumbled next door to the party and the place was more packed than I’d ever seen it with everyone in crazy costumes. My friend Carlos, dressed like a Chicago mobster, threw people out of the way to give me a bear hug. “It is all good now that you are here,” he said. “Are you good?”
“I’m alright,” I told him.
And I am. It’s a new day that was ending with a hell of a party. There is no lack of people wanting to talk, all of them aware of the changes in my life. Like every place there was one who tried to be funny about it but ended up looking like an ass. But the Sabbatical on the road ended with lots of hugs (mostly from the people who work here), amusement, laughs and promises of things to come.
And I am a firm believer in promises of things to come.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Promises of things to come
fI watch the sun rise over the ocean a lot but rarely do I get to do it 17,000 feet in the air. Flying out of Jacksonville the pilot hugs the coast of Florida. It is black when we take off and the stars of the Milky Way are brilliant in their display. I stare out of the window trying to pick out the cities that we are flying over. St. Augustine. Daytona.
Then it begins. The ocean goes on forever and is black and brooding. Then a hint of pink appears on the horizon thin and distant. I watch it as it turns redder and redder. The black sky turns into the deepest of blues with a growing red line over a black sea that remains asleep.
I can recognize the shoreline easily now and see waves that appear to be miles long softly kissing the beach. The ocean turns from black to gray. A haze of yellow begins to erupt from the red line. The dark blue sky becomes muted. Clouds appear that are almost as gray as the sea and I can’t help but think that they are still asleep but will wake soon.
The yellow haze begins to fade and the deep red line becomes this mixture of colors that reach upward becoming one with the blue sky. White clouds roll in and the ocean turns green. And I feel blessed to witness the birth of a day.
Eventually this one took me back to St. Martin which I love. A day of travel by yourself can leave you melancholy so I was ready for action. After immigration was finally convinced that I would eventually leave the island, I was allowed in.
Because of a lengthy delay, I’d missed my ride so I met Nate, the cab driver. As we made our way to the other side of the island, he happily sang Christmas songs that were blaring from the radio.
“Hey Nate, it’s kind of early for Christmas isn’t it?”
Naw Mon,” he replied with a smile. “It starts Halloween here.”
Alright then. Nate pulled into the lone grocery store still open so that I could pick up provisions. Inside children of all colors and sizes were dressed in costumes, mostly ghosts and devils. As I made my way up and down the aisles, they would come and smile at me and hand ME a piece of candy. One little boy dressed as Superman screamed bloody murder every time he saw one. It is hard not to love it here.
I called my Mom to tell her that I was safe and she told me that I was in the New York Times Book Review. It seems that my book Tour of Homes is listed as one of the best books about Savannah by a local author. Cool Beans!
It didn’t take me long to unpack the storage bin and arrange the room. As I did so Paul and Nancy were knocking on my door. They are friends from Canada and were dressed as Jokers on the card. They told me that they had a place reserved for me at their table for the big Halloween party. It is damn nice to be welcomed and know that you have been anticipated.
So I stumbled next door to the party and the place was more packed than I’d ever seen it with everyone in crazy costumes. My friend Carlos, dressed like a Chicago mobster, threw people out of the way to give me a bear hug. “It is all good now that you are here,” he said. “Are you good?”
“I’m alright,” I told him.
And I am. It’s a new day that was ending with a hell of a party. There is no lack of people wanting to talk, all of them aware of the changes in my life. Like every place there was one who tried to be funny about it but ended up looking like an ass. But the Sabbatical on the road ended with lots of hugs (mostly from the people who work here), amusement, laughs and promises of things to come.
And I am a firm believer in promises of things to come.
Then it begins. The ocean goes on forever and is black and brooding. Then a hint of pink appears on the horizon thin and distant. I watch it as it turns redder and redder. The black sky turns into the deepest of blues with a growing red line over a black sea that remains asleep.
I can recognize the shoreline easily now and see waves that appear to be miles long softly kissing the beach. The ocean turns from black to gray. A haze of yellow begins to erupt from the red line. The dark blue sky becomes muted. Clouds appear that are almost as gray as the sea and I can’t help but think that they are still asleep but will wake soon.
The yellow haze begins to fade and the deep red line becomes this mixture of colors that reach upward becoming one with the blue sky. White clouds roll in and the ocean turns green. And I feel blessed to witness the birth of a day.
Eventually this one took me back to St. Martin which I love. A day of travel by yourself can leave you melancholy so I was ready for action. After immigration was finally convinced that I would eventually leave the island, I was allowed in.
Because of a lengthy delay, I’d missed my ride so I met Nate, the cab driver. As we made our way to the other side of the island, he happily sang Christmas songs that were blaring from the radio.
“Hey Nate, it’s kind of early for Christmas isn’t it?”
Naw Mon,” he replied with a smile. “It starts Halloween here.”
Alright then. Nate pulled into the lone grocery store still open so that I could pick up provisions. Inside children of all colors and sizes were dressed in costumes, mostly ghosts and devils. As I made my way up and down the aisles, they would come and smile at me and hand ME a piece of candy. One little boy dressed as Superman screamed bloody murder every time he saw one. It is hard not to love it here.
I called my Mom to tell her that I was safe and she told me that I was in the New York Times Book Review. It seems that my book Tour of Homes is listed as one of the best books about Savannah by a local author. Cool Beans!
It didn’t take me long to unpack the storage bin and arrange the room. As I did so Paul and Nancy were knocking on my door. They are friends from Canada and were dressed as Jokers on the card. They told me that they had a place reserved for me at their table for the big Halloween party. It is damn nice to be welcomed and know that you have been anticipated.
So I stumbled next door to the party and the place was more packed than I’d ever seen it with everyone in crazy costumes. My friend Carlos, dressed like a Chicago mobster, threw people out of the way to give me a bear hug. “It is all good now that you are here,” he said. “Are you good?”
“I’m alright,” I told him.
And I am. It’s a new day that was ending with a hell of a party. There is no lack of people wanting to talk, all of them aware of the changes in my life. Like every place there was one who tried to be funny about it but ended up looking like an ass. But the Sabbatical on the road ended with lots of hugs (mostly from the people who work here), amusement, laughs and promises of things to come.
And I am a firm believer in promises of things to come.
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