Getting sand between the toes with friends and taking on the Pacific ocean are a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Sometimes people show up in multiple family units, dedicated to wearing the little kids out for an early bedtime so the big kids can reminisce about how good it used to feel when they were little kids and would play so hard they would go to bed exhausted, the fun quotient of the day thoroughly used up without anything wasted and nothing left over.

And yes, I’ll take anyone’s photo, anywhere, every time, going to great lengths to get strangers a high-res, Christmas-card worthy image, for free. It might be a sickness. I can’t help myself.

Sometimes the gathering is more “Hey, watcha wanna do this afternoon, Becky?”

For some it’s all about the thrill of bare, numb feet, racing towards the roaring crash of water coming at you, safe because you’re holding hands… and Mom has all the shoes…

… and sometimes the thunder of waves provides a refuge of uninterrupted mind space, exactly the level of solitude you need to become the hero, a doer of great deeds of daring on the open seas.

The beach is a “mistakes cost nothing” canvas one moment…

… and a catwalk for a high-fashion dreamer the next…

… and a chance to stomp ahead down the path in a little pink pout, if you feel like it.

It’s a 3D light box with no self-awareness and room to spread out a little and play with light and shadows and some new moves*…

… and it’s a time for kindred spirits to stroll along in a silence of understanding and companionship.

It sponsors spontaneous affection one moment…

… and coy-for-the-camera cheesiness the next.

But mostly, the beach is a clean slate, where nothing needs to compete for room to grow…

… including friendship.

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* Stay tuned… coming to a screen near you soon!

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