will also be a good time for Garrett and me to rebond. Maybe we’ll enjoy a romantic Topsail sunset later in the day and finally unwind from our incredibly busy and separate lives.
Mother insists on doing the dishes and sprucing up the kitchen for the summer season, while Daddy settles in front of the TV for a long afternoon of old western movies. Aunt Joy grabs her favorite Sidney Sheldon novel and looks ready for a long stint of heavy reading on the porch. Garrett goes to our bedroom and starts to unpack. I enjoy flipping through an old family photo album filled with snapshots of days gone by, when I was a little girl who dreamed of mermaids and played with porpoises and passing schools of fish in the sea.
After a bit, I go find Garrett, who seems to be hiding out in our bedroom, watching a game on TV. I crawl into bed and lie next to him, nestling up against his big body, my head on his chest. His arms remain behind his head as he is totally engrossed in sports and seems not at all interested in me. I try to warm things up.
“Hey, baby …” I start. “Wouldn’t it be nice to take a long walk on the beach together?”
“Aw, c’mon, Dee.” Garrett rubs his head and sighs. “I’m tired. Damn! We’ve been traveling all day.”
“I know, but, honey, we’re at the beach, and it’s so beautiful. Don’t you want to watch the sunset?”
“There’ll be another one tomorrow.”
“ Please ? C’mon, Garrett, we can relax on the beach … and … maybe …” I look up at Garrett, giving my husband a coy look.
“Oh, hell naw, baby. You know I ain’t gettin’ down in no sand! No way; plus, I’m just tired, Dee. Maybe tomorrow.” Garrett gives me his puppy-dog look.
I lie here wishing I had a husband, not a puppy, who would enjoy long walks on the beach with me in the sunshine and the sunsets of Topsail Island as we share long romantic talks about our promising future together and all the dreams we will build as one. But I don’t. I instead have a husband who despises the beach. He hates his feet touching sand and has apparently lost his appetite for conversation, sex, and me as well. So I decide to take my long walk anyway. When Aunt Joy gathers that I’m walking alone, she puts down her novel and insists on joining me.
“I can’t go as far as I used to, kiddo,” she says, “but I’ll walk with you just a bit to feel the warm sand beneath my feet.”
“Wonderful.” I smile, remembering the many long walks and talks Aunt Joy and I have shared. We head down the beach, as we have done hundreds of times before, and I am startled by how much our little island has grown. New, modern homes seem to be popping up everywhere. Our little Topsail Island is indeed changing.
“Now, Dee, you are just going to have to tell me why you haven’t been back to Topsail in so long. That’s not like you.” Aunt Joy keeps a close sideways watch on me as we slowly stroll down the long stretch of beach.
“Oh, I don’t know, Aunt Joy. I guess it’s mainly because Garrett has never really been into the ‘North Carolina beach thing,’ as he calls it. He says he wants to try more exotic places in the world, like Jamaica, St. Bart’s, or Puerto Rico.”
“Well, what do they have that we don’t have, Destiny?” Aunt Joy looks incredulous. “What? What do they have?”
“Golf courses,” I reply.
I feel a sudden rush of shame, feeling that, like a fool, I gave up one of my favorite places on earth—a most sacred gift from my family—and for what? Love in a concrete jungle? Love that I now find myself suspicious of and fighting for? How could I have given up so much of myself and what means so much to me for a love I’m not even sure of? Love is not giving your family, friends, and foundation away.
I look up and down the shore, and as far as I can see, there is not another soul around. I don’t want Aunt Joy to sense my sadness or witness my tears, so I suggest we walk with our faces to the sun, and
Mother insists on doing the dishes and sprucing up the kitchen for the summer season, while Daddy settles in front of the TV for a long afternoon of old western movies. Aunt Joy grabs her favorite Sidney Sheldon novel and looks ready for a long stint of heavy reading on the porch. Garrett goes to our bedroom and starts to unpack. I enjoy flipping through an old family photo album filled with snapshots of days gone by, when I was a little girl who dreamed of mermaids and played with porpoises and passing schools of fish in the sea.
After a bit, I go find Garrett, who seems to be hiding out in our bedroom, watching a game on TV. I crawl into bed and lie next to him, nestling up against his big body, my head on his chest. His arms remain behind his head as he is totally engrossed in sports and seems not at all interested in me. I try to warm things up.
“Hey, baby …” I start. “Wouldn’t it be nice to take a long walk on the beach together?”
“Aw, c’mon, Dee.” Garrett rubs his head and sighs. “I’m tired. Damn! We’ve been traveling all day.”
“I know, but, honey, we’re at the beach, and it’s so beautiful. Don’t you want to watch the sunset?”
“There’ll be another one tomorrow.”
“ Please ? C’mon, Garrett, we can relax on the beach … and … maybe …” I look up at Garrett, giving my husband a coy look.
“Oh, hell naw, baby. You know I ain’t gettin’ down in no sand! No way; plus, I’m just tired, Dee. Maybe tomorrow.” Garrett gives me his puppy-dog look.
I lie here wishing I had a husband, not a puppy, who would enjoy long walks on the beach with me in the sunshine and the sunsets of Topsail Island as we share long romantic talks about our promising future together and all the dreams we will build as one. But I don’t. I instead have a husband who despises the beach. He hates his feet touching sand and has apparently lost his appetite for conversation, sex, and me as well. So I decide to take my long walk anyway. When Aunt Joy gathers that I’m walking alone, she puts down her novel and insists on joining me.
“I can’t go as far as I used to, kiddo,” she says, “but I’ll walk with you just a bit to feel the warm sand beneath my feet.”
“Wonderful.” I smile, remembering the many long walks and talks Aunt Joy and I have shared. We head down the beach, as we have done hundreds of times before, and I am startled by how much our little island has grown. New, modern homes seem to be popping up everywhere. Our little Topsail Island is indeed changing.
“Now, Dee, you are just going to have to tell me why you haven’t been back to Topsail in so long. That’s not like you.” Aunt Joy keeps a close sideways watch on me as we slowly stroll down the long stretch of beach.
“Oh, I don’t know, Aunt Joy. I guess it’s mainly because Garrett has never really been into the ‘North Carolina beach thing,’ as he calls it. He says he wants to try more exotic places in the world, like Jamaica, St. Bart’s, or Puerto Rico.”
“Well, what do they have that we don’t have, Destiny?” Aunt Joy looks incredulous. “What? What do they have?”
“Golf courses,” I reply.
I feel a sudden rush of shame, feeling that, like a fool, I gave up one of my favorite places on earth—a most sacred gift from my family—and for what? Love in a concrete jungle? Love that I now find myself suspicious of and fighting for? How could I have given up so much of myself and what means so much to me for a love I’m not even sure of? Love is not giving your family, friends, and foundation away.
I look up and down the shore, and as far as I can see, there is not another soul around. I don’t want Aunt Joy to sense my sadness or witness my tears, so I suggest we walk with our faces to the sun, and
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