Islands Magazine got me through Many Blustery Winters!
I have slipped and slided through many a Chicago winter! Snow day???!!! Never! Hearty Chicago folks just do it! Blustery is a word you hear often over there. Wind, snow, drifts, surround you, push you, propel you and your car, wherever they want. Getting this complimentary Beach issue in the mail at this time, reminded me of all the Chicago winters when Islands Magazine was my gateway to another world.
Ever since I was a toddler, beach meant vacation, relaxing, picnics, play, reunions, and fun for my whole family. My Uncle had a boat….very impressive back then! Sticks were gathered and lean-tos were made with extra blankets to shield out the sun. My Dad would build a small bonfire for us all. We ate roasted marshmallows, ice cold Orange Crush, chips, and the best hot dogs ever! Grandparents, Uncles, Aunts, cousins, were all there for the Beach experience. It was a party!
I had every kind of sand toy imaginable at the time. I even had a sandbox, on the back porch, on the 3rd floor of our first apartment in the city, to remind me of the Beach. Sand, water, beach, toys….all good memories. The Beach became some deeply implanted escape in my mind. When I wanted to leave boring behind, I’d think of the beach. Even today, that is my #1 daydream.
At the dentist office? Not if I can help it. I’m on the beach….in my imagination. Like Jody Foster in Contact, I can feel the sand running through my fingers, smell the ocean, feel a warm breeze, walk the hot sand. I have a hut there to watch the sunset. Going there in my mind, makes me breathe deeper, relax more, and release all body tension. It’s really a physical thing. We now know that memories of past experiences, or seeing a movie about it, or reading about it, all light up the same parts of the brain. So my imagination is as good as a memory.
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