A Touch of Gold

Breathing


The photo title was inspired by Ingrid Michaelson's song, "Keep Breathing". An excerpt from the lyrics:

"The storm is coming but I don't mind.
People are dying, I close my blinds.
All that I know is I'm breathing now. "

We found these balloons on the beach at Island Beach State Park, printed with "Feliz Pascua" - Spanish for Happy Easter.

I really wish they had camping at this park, I could easily spend a few days there (in the off-season, at least). I'd like to go back and explore the Maritime Forest nature trail.

To learn more about New Jersey's Pine Barrens, click here.

Sand in My Hair

Hi all. I'm back from NJ, we'll see if I need to go back there again this week. I'm not sure why I've been so reluctant to share this, but the bad news I've spoken of is that my Grandpa is not doing well.

It was a stressful weekend, but we're a strong family, and we were almost all there. Saturday morning we woke up early after a fretful night's sleep, and some of us went to the hospital to be with Grandpa when they took him off the respirator. Against all expectations, he's been breathing on his own since then. Things could change at any moment, and none of us really knows what to expect or how to feel. He's been through a lot for a 90-year old.

After getting back to the house Saturday morning, I needed an escape. Several of us headed down to the shore. We went to Island Beach State Park - it felt like the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Soft blue colors, diffuse morning light, empty sand and sea stretched out as far as we could see. I ran until I was gasping for breath, I took photographs, and I just lay in the sand feeling the weight of the earth supporting me, with the sound of the waves drowning out all of the worry and exhaustion.





I felt like I could stay there forever. But life goes on, so I stood up, brushed the sand out of my hair, and we walked back toward reality.

Check out the Island Beach State Park website here.
Learn more about barrier island ecosystems here.