The Beach

Pretend for just one minute that the shot above is not lopsided and all the water isn't about to drain out of the lower left corner.  Or, just ignore it and move along to the shot below that's slightly more balanced, which is a lot more than we can say for the photographer.

Mathews has the rare privilege of being surrounded by water, and those of us who live here are fortunate that the county has set aside several beaches for public access.

Although lacking the roaring ocean surf of the Outer Banks and the verve and vivacity of Virginia Beach, our beaches do have a lot to offer including horseflies, mosquitoes, fiddler crabs and stinging nettles.

Unspoiled, undeveloped, and untouched by man (except for bare feet, of course), the county beaches are a great place to unwind, decompress and reconnect with nature.

Last weekend I went to Aaron's Beach--twice.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous and there was so much to see and take in.

Like the bright red sponge below.

Speaking of bright red, there were also whole, red chili peppers strewn all up and down the shoreline.  Somebody must have upset the hot pepper cart over on the Eastern Shore, because a boatload of them washed ashore.  Odd. Very odd.  But we don't bat an eye at odd around here.  We've come to project expect it.

There's nothing quite like a warm day in November at the beach.  Lots of salt air, bright sunshine, white sand and miles and miles of water for as far as the eye can see.

And not a single fiddler crab or horsefly in sight. Just chili peppers.

I'm very, very grateful for our beaches and our proximity to that vast expanse of water that is the bay, which brings me great peace, joy and tranquility without ever really trying.