We decided to travel to the West Coast of Florida to spend a quiet romantic weekend by the sea. Just my lady love and I. This turned out to be a fabulous weekend getaway.
Our plan was to visit Sanibel and Captiva islands to see if we could find a great place for dinner and a place on the beach to spot a nice sunset and enjoy a romantic walk on the beach. The drive to the Islands was pretty busy and traffic got quite heavy as we approached the sky bridge over to Sanibel Island.
We decided to try a place called “The Island Cow” for an early dinner and were not disappointed with the menu selection, the fresh seafood and of course, some proverbial parts of “cow” were definitely part of the menu! We enjoyed the ambiance of the location, quite crowded with noisy tourists, including ourselves. We met a few folks from way up north escaping the harsh reality of winter for a few days and friendly banter made the experience even more entertaining.
As sundown was rapidly approaching, we hurried to the beach and walked along to the end of the jetty, and had a look at what turned out to be a spectacular sight. We were we treated to a riot of colors as the sun made its way down to the sea through the broken cloud, their unformed shapes and various shades of grey and white allowing rays of sunlight to filter through in beams of light and delight the visual senses. We were also entertained by the antics of a group of Pelicans who were fishing for their own dinner no more than 50 feet away from us! It was an amazing sight to see these birds circle at low height and then dive straight down into the sea and grab some type of fish right out of the water. Gulping quickly with their huge beaks and then furiously flapping their wings to get airborne again in mere seconds. I took many photographs trying to capture one of the Pelicans in the act of diving and catching its prey! What a sight. Kids and adults alike all enjoying this spectacle and everyone trying to get pictures of these magnificent flying fishermen, (male or female) no one could tell.
We stayed long after the last glimmer of light faded as the sun slowly disappeared below the far horizon, and bringing a hush over the folks watching this spectacle. The setting seemed so peaceful that we did not want to disturb the silence with words, merely holding each other close and letting the warmth of the evening cloak us in its embrace. My lover and I then took a slow romantic stroll along the beach right at the water’s edge for almost two hours. What a wonderful way to end a perfect getaway to start our weekend. One we will always treasure in our hearts.
Just a word before I leave you to your thoughts. Happiness is a state of mind, and not something you can get from anyone else or anything external. Happiness, peace of mind, and tranquility are values that we all have within us to either express to others or merely to keep to ourselves and keep us grounded in the here and now.
It is also something that we can as human beings express through our feelings, empathy, caring about others, positive attitudes, and a willingness to help those less fortunate and who need a helping hand.
I am now a willing participant in “Paying it Forward.” I urge you to give it a try and you will be amazed at the good feeling that will surround you. Bless you and your good thoughts.
Author: Dave Rohee
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