Rejoice with Joy Unspeakable: Gulf Shores: Day One and Two

I know that all my faithful readers have been diligently and hopefully checking this blog daily for a new post about our trip down to Gulf Shores Alabama. Well, on this rainy and cold Black Friday, I have decided to take a respite from my vacationing to allow you poor Illinioians in on a taste of the fun!

We arrived early, at six o’clock on Wednesday morning. The night of traveling was long and hard, but our van was big enough to allow mostly all of us to lie flat to catch some sleep. Our first sight of the beach was beautifully painted with the sunrise. Not ready quite yet to take a rest, we quickly unpacked and by 8:00 were down on the beach to fish, play, and lay out in the warming sun. Amazingly bright, it was the sun that instantly brought up our spirits and we couldn’t help but laugh and be joyful knowing we have an entire week of beautiful warmth while our home is attacked by a barrage of terribly cold weather.

After having tired of just enjoying the general splendor, Ryan, Steven, and I stepped into the water. We were pleasantly surprised to feel that it was cool enough to be refreshing, and warm enough to be enjoyable. It didn’t take long for us to start tackling the roaring waves to submit and allow us to ride upon them at great speeds toward the beach. We faced the growling giants with ferocity and courage.

We quit for lunch and then stopped for a much needed nap. Lieing in the sun, we were asleep before our heads touched our beach towels.

Once rested, it was time to hit the waves again, and we were glad to be given the opportunity of playing in the water once again.

We ate a delicious meal of ribeye steak for supper and, after playing some fun card games in the condo, retired early, pleased with such a beautiful day.

November 25, 2010. Thanksgiving Day. I arose early after a lovely, if not a little to hot, night’s sleep and went out to check for any seashells that may have washed up during the night. Instead of seashells, the beach was littered with something quite different. Blue Portuguese Man-o-War (jelly fish) and Yellowish brown seaweed as far as the eye could see. There was not a seashell in sight. At first we didn’t know what these funny blue bubbles were and, in all our cleverness, discovered that it was fun to pop them with our feet. We came back to the condo and did a bit of research and found that they are, in fact, the Man-O-War, the most dangerous “jellyfish” in the Gulf Coast. They still sting even after they are dried up on the beach. The websites advised that, if stung, 911 should be called immediately as the venom can go to the lungs and heart and put the victim in shock. “And, I was telling my kids to pop them with their bare feet!” mom exclaimed, quite distressed at the thought.

79 degree weather and there was no way we were getting into that water this day! Instead Dad and Karin went to the Pier to do a little fishing. We joined them shortly. This Pier is the longest one in the Gulf of Mexico. After a long hike over the water, one comes to the end, which is crowded with fishermen. The circular dock area is a hub of activity as hopeful fisher’s cast out, and excited ones tug their poles at every bite. Every once and a while someone’s pole will bend dramatically and the fisher would engage into the repetitive motions of letting the line go slack and then reeling it up. A crowd always gathered, tense with anticipation to get the first glimpse of what might be struggling at the end of the line in the dark sea. Most were big, iridescent, smelly catfish. These were always thrown back. The occasional special ones were giant Red fish, which put smiles on the tired fishermen’s faces. These were a tasty and gratifying prize. Now for the exotic fish. Karin pulled up a sting ray. I still shudder at the picture in my head of their weird mouths. It bother’s me for some reason. One man accidently hooked a poor seagull. Several small sharks were caught, however, they were not pulled all the way up. It is illegal to bring a shark onto the deck as they tend to get nasty and bite. A shark on deck is a 500 dollar fine. When the men were not pulling up all these interesting marine life, there was always something else to look at. Gulls and Pelicans soared at eye level of the pier. Upon their powerful and wide wingspans they seemed to float on the air above the water. You could always tell they saw a prize underneath for they would immediately ascend into the sky. Once reaching an adequate height, the birds would take just a moment to check the fish was still there before plunging themselves like missiles toward the greenish sea. (I love birds) We even saw some Dolphins, no doubt hunting for the same fish we were trying to hook.

That took half the day, the other half was spent traditionally: with the three generations of girls in the kitchen, cooking and laughing and enjoying each other while preparing Thanksgiving dinner. It was lovely in deed, and well worth the work:

I don’t think I even need to tell you what I am thankful for. It has to be quite obvious. I am so blessed!

And how could I not feel blessed, after dinner we ventured outside to see the sun as a great red orb slowly making it’s descent to rest, first upon, then below the glistening sea.