Never Say Never

 

Have you ever said  never When my children were smaller, I swore off Myrtle Beach SC.  It was too crowded, too commercial, and not impressive.  It was always close and affordable.  I held more than 2 decades of memories there.  For the most part I always had a really good time.

That is until one year while my children were younger, we went for 4th of July weekend.   We had just had our second child, were exhausted, and it was hot.  The beach was more crowded than I’ve ever experienced, and it was overwhelming.  My oldest son was playing on the shore.  The currents kept drifting him down the shoreline, and it was an ongoing chore to keep up with him visually.    We were taking turns checking on him. 

I started breast feeding, and looked down and my husband was asleep.  I immediately jumped up and ran looking for our other son.  I couldn’t find him.  My whole world stopped and went into slow motion.  It was the scariest 20 minutes of my life.

As we frantically searched around, an onlooking mother asked me if I was looking for my son, who’d she had seen me instructing previously.  I swallowed my pride and started crying YES!  I was overwhelmed in embarrassment and shame that I had lost my kid in mere moments.   She told me we had to immediately notify the lifeguards, which I would not have thought to do.  It was mere moments, and he was missing.

I had told my child that if they were ever in public and couldn’t find me, to go to a women holding a small baby and ask her for help.  He did.  If felt like days, but a short time later, the life guards met in the middle and brought him back to us.

Needless to say that days were taken off my life in the form of stress impact. In that moment, I realized a lot.  We can’t take anything for granted, not even for a second.  I had made a poor judgement call.   My whole life flashed in front of me in that single moment and gave me blinding clarity on some major decisions I would be making soon after.  I realized that God was looking out for me and my kids from dangers seen and unseen, and was incredibly humbled, and grateful.  This terrible thing happened to me at Myrtle Beach, and I was never going back.

Since that time I’ve visiting some incredible beaches near home in some pretty cool places.  Here are my favorites

  • ·         Tybee Island Savannah GA
  • ·         Kinekeet Beach- OBX NC
  • ·         Sullivan’s Island- Charleston SC
  • ·         Ormond Beach – Daytona FL
  • ·         Anywhere in the Gulf Coast- FL
  • ·         South Beach Miami FL

I had no interest in returning, until this month.  We managed to stay away for 10 years. A fluke of events  occurred for me to go with expenses paid.  How could I say no?

So never and a day came.  I swallowed my ego, forgave myself, and drove to the beach.  The memories immediately began to flood me, even on the drive down.  Decades of wonderful memories.   Then it hit me, bad experiences don’t make a place bad.  It just means you have to create new experiences, if you love the place.  It was time for me to forgive Myrtle Beach.

I went to Myrtle Beach, and remembered my youth.  It was our go to beach as teenagers and young adults.  I watched it grow and develop.  It has matured, and so have I.    I created new memories that I’ll cherish with my kids (who are much older) 

So,  it will go back on my list, probably last, but definitely with the most bang for the buck and place to manifest new luck.  Never say never, because you may be going back, but not in time.  You’ll be going back to a location in a new dimension.  One where you can create better memories.

 Abundance Always

 






Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Sing Unto the Lord

The Universe

The New Yorker