It’s the one week of the year that we leave everything (that is, everything that doesn’t fit in our minivan and car top carrier) and head to our own piece of paradise (that is, my parents’ condo at the beach). Days start late; how many buckets and snacks one can simultaneously carry consumes our mornings; afternoons are slow and all about wii and naps; and evenings plans are dictated by caramel popcorn and frozen yogurt by the ounce. That’s vacation…and it’s a beautiful thing when everyone just seems a little bit happier.
We were walking in the surf last night when no one but fishermen filled the beach. Lydia jumped tiny ripples as if they were tidal waves while the rest of us admired the remains of castles created hours earlier.
Ashlyn played off to the side, pushing the sand around with her bare toes.
Mommy, mommy, quick, come see something!
She was carving initials into the sand, but they were not her own in some fleeting commemoration of puppy love. They were ours.
Kelly + Mark.
in a heart.
surrounded by a footprint heart.
That’s what marriage looks like to her—two people who go together, who enjoy each other’s company, who laugh at each other’s jokes, and who love their kids but don’t hide the fact that they like their alone time together. She sees us like two people giddy in love, and I couldn’t be happier about it. While she’s surrounded by messages about what love is, I’m thankful to be the ones showing her the truth and I’m thankful she recognizes it as such.
One day, I know she’ll be carving her own initials in the sand. But, for now, I’m glad she’s carving ours firmly believing that even though the waves will rise and her childlike artwork wash away, what it represents will not.
