"I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown for going out, I found, was really going in." - John Muir.
From the moment my toes sink into wet shingle I feel cleansed of the city buzz. There's something so calming about being at the sea. Breathing in the salty air, gazing out as far as the eye can see and generally just slowing down from the rushing about that we all do.
......And then there is the searching, the unearthing and the gathering of sea treasures.
Our family has been collecting cowrie shells for as long as I can remember. If a cowrie washes up on the sand we see it as a message from our loved ones who have passed on. A message of love. We see you, we hear you, we are here.
My eldest daughter favoured the spotless white cowries and my youngest, the little brown speckled ones. I love the sand buffed, worn cowries....though I have to admit that the first siting of a perfect new cowrie makes my heart sing.
I have been working on my "Beachcomber" totem for the past week and reliving those long languid days, wandering along the sea shore.
