Coney Island

Yesterday I decided to take the day off to do nothing but something fun and relaxing. (So if any of my roommates are reading this, I had this planned before you decided to have a spring cleaning day!) Which fit in perfectly with my small group bible lesson from this week, taking a Sabbath. There was much discussion as to what it means to take a Sabbath, but I went away with the understanding that it is important to take time to de-stress and unwind from the busy week. And especially in this city, where even going grocery shopping or doing the laundry can be a real chore!

So yesterday I started off my day by going to Coney Island. It was in the 70's and overcast, but after an entire week of rain (and especially getting rained on--no getting into your car from your attached garage in this city!) I considered it to be a perfect day!

It would be impossible for me to say everything I did, but I'm going to try! First was a stop at Nathan's Coney Island for a hot dog and fries, a must when going to Coney Island. They have a bunch of stand up tables, so I joined someone, (with his permission, of course) since there were no empty tables. Turns out he was a vendor on his lunch break. He had been coming to CI all his life, and told me about the many changes that have occurred at the park.

Then it was off to walk the boardwalk; a 5 minute free massage; a ride on the tilt-a-whirl (my absolute favorite ride ever!); played a couple of games of ski-ball; shot some objects in the shooting gallery (and I'm a good shot, too--I hit some buckets that sprayed water on the people who were next to me!); walked along the beach and went into the water up to my knees (it was cold); saw some people fishing (and they used chicken as bait--I think they were going for crabs?); saw an African festival; and read a book on the beach.

The thing that struck me most was the people. It wasn't too crowded since the weather wasn't nice, but the people there were all enjoying themselves. Kids swimming, making sandcastles, burying each other and their parents in the sand. And it seemed to me that most of the people there were not wealthy (me judging them by what they wore and had with them, shallow maybe, but probably accurate.) It reminded me a lot of how I grew up. I always remember having a ball with my siblings and cousins. We were poor, but we were always together and we always had a good time (until someone got hurt and we got yelled at, that is.) There were so many smiles and so much laughter on that beach, that I felt totally re-energized by being there around so many people who were able to enjoy the simple things in life.

That seems to vary so much when I see children, teens and adults of those who seem to have everything (meaning mostly $$$.) There doesn't seem to be as much joy and laughter. I hope that I can remember what is truly important in life, and remember to have joy and laughter every day, not because of what I have, but because of who I'm with and because I am truly loved by my creator.