Walking barefoot in the sand you can feel the slight scratchiness of the granules under your feet. A muffled squishing sound accompanies your footfalls as you make your way towards the water. All around you various sights, sounds, and scents become apparent as you marvel at the wonder that is the sea, a place where you can find spiritual attunement and healing.

The enormity of the moving ocean is awesome to behold, yet there is so much more to take in and enjoy. One of the first things you notice as you approach the water is the fresh salt air. It is an invigorating smell that makes you breath deeply, cleansing your mind and caressing your soul. As you walk along you notice piles of green and brown seaweed that has been brought in by the waves. The plants smell of the salt water, and sea creatures such as snails and pretty blue mussels are tangled in the vegetation.

The sounds at the beach both bombard and soothe. The crashing waves pile onto the beach and then draw back, leaving behind gurgling, bubbly foam. Seagulls, terns, and sandpipers chatter to each other as they fly over the sand or run along the waterline looking for a meal. Ocean breezes stir the tall grass along the sand dunes, resulting in a gentle rustling sound. A foghorn sounds from a distant lighthouse. The environment is very much alive, and you can’t help but feel more alive as well. Your step is light as you continue on.

All around you are natural treasures. The light and dark colored stones are rounded and smooth from all the years of being abraded by the movement of the water. Seashells litter the beach with texture and color in shades of pink, tan, white, blue, purple, and gold, each unique in their own way and quite lovely. You can’t help but place a few shells into your pocket for admiring later, mementoes of an idyllic place. Pieces of pale gray driftwood lie on the sand, drying in the sun. If you look closely enough among the boulders at the water’s edge you can see all sorts of sea life: little crabs burying themselves in the sand, clams, sand dollars, and scallops waiting for the next wave to bring them back out into the open ocean, snails crawling slowly along the rocks, a starfish moving along the sandy floor, and even prawns swimming in the waves. Jellyfish are a fascinating sight but are cautiously observed.

You wade into the water and enjoy the cool waves tickling at your ankles and creeping up your legs. You look around and become aware of the peace and harmony within your self, and with all that is around you. It is amazing to be a part of this grand and stimulating scene filled with life, beauty, and gifts of nature. It’s an environment that has its own dynamic, and it feels right and good to be in the midst of it. The ocean breeze is in your face, and the ebb and flow of the water echoes your breath. You smile, a smile felt deep inside. As you gaze at the sunshine sparkling off the water in a vast fiery display, you feel your spirit lift and float free like the seagulls soaring overhead.