On a Beach Walk: No. 33

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I like walking the beach. It’s good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.

My day starts on a colorful note. I awakened early – stars were still visible in the dark sky and there was enough light to see the whites of the waves. The eastern horizon contains a narrow streak of light. Oranges soon appeared along with light blues, grays, and even reds to accent the black. The light show continues with gradual changes, then the sun eventually sneaks over the horizon to start a new day.

Wonderful colors started my day. Later, I walked noticing the water is pristine and a natural emerald-green of the area. I think of crystal clear blue seen in parts of the Caribbean, or that special Ligurian Blue of the Ligurian Sea in Italy.

The sunny sky is blue with a sprinkling of white clouds across the sky. Although the sand is whitish, most of the buildings are shades of white and beige with an occasional colored roof. There’s also a beautiful blue scattered on the beach by the water – the deep hued blue with a pink crown of the Portuguese Man-of-War stands out saying, “Don’t step on me or else!”

People bring bright colors to the beach. T-shirts, sportswear, swimwear, umbrellas, chairs, and more provided spots of brightness. The beach flags today are also yellow (Medium hazard, cautious swimming) and purple (Marine pests – the stinging ones).

But the natural colors are what I ponder the most. The wide-ranging colors of shells always capture my attention. With different shades of brown and gray – and with brown combining with red to provide orange – but red is not absent. Some grays have so little white that they are black, yet a few have so little black they are white. Colors often combine in different arrangement in bands, streaks, or blotches.

I return to the emerald water that transports me to the spring and summer at home. All the greens. So many shades of green in nature resembling the many shades of green found in paint stores – and probably more. The plant’s green comes from chlorophyll that captures light necessary to produce their own food.

Plants have different amounts of the two types of chlorophyll, which can also be found in different concentrations. Different habits, leaves of different ages, and different amounts of minerals contribute to different shades of green in nature. It seems the biology teacher is still in me.

I’ve noted an array of colors on my day, but who knows how many I’ve missed. Noticing colors is a good thing, especially when walking the beach, which is good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.