One place I haven't been to in awhile is the beach. I went to Laguna Beach yesterday just to read, reflect, and chill. I felt like that time was really great for connecting with God. There's something peaceful about the rhythm of the waves. All of the extra things in life seemed to be washed away.
Today, I went back to Laguna Beach, but I went there to help clean the beach. I received a traffic ticket a few months back for a rolling stop. I went to court and requested community service as an alternative to paying a ticket I could not afford. I called up Save Our Shores to ask about volunteering opportunities. They host beach cleaning events once a month. The man who supervised today handed me a checklist with all kinds of different items on it. Searching for garbage on the beach was very similar to a scavenger hunt. It was interesting to see what we could find. I found an unopened beer can, an unopened Pepsi, part of a computer, human poop wrapped in a paper towel, a pair of socks in the ocean, plenty of broken glass, plastic wrappers, a butane gas cartridge can. There were only 3 of us volunteers cleaning up Laguna Beach. We sent about 100 pounds of garbage and recycling away from the beach today. The experience was very rewarding because I know that I was involved in preserving something that is so beautiful. After we carried our loot to the road to be picked up, I spent about 30 minutes just enjoying the beach. I took my shoes off and dipped my feet in the water. I saw a seal pop his head up out of the water just a few feet from the shore. As I was leaving, I saw other people showing up at the beach to enjoy the beauty and the peace, and I felt a sense of pride and ownership. I feel thankful that something that was such a disturbance to my life a few months ago has become a mandate for me to make time to be refreshed. No amount of vegging can really refresh me like that.
