I did a triathlon in Cape May (Exit 0!) at the beginning of June. The ferry takes you out into the Delaware Bay (or is the Atlantic Ocean?) and you jump 13 feet off the ferry and swim a mile back to the beach. I’m no longer competitive with anyone but myself, but as Wendell Berry beautifully puts it, “For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.”
I always say being a loved Labrador Retriever in my next life seems like a step up the food chain, especially since the food has improved.
Aw, this is SO lovely David, and thank you for referencing my post. Honestly, I could feel you in those waves and it made me long for the shore - and also helped me to understand I can find that feeling in the present. Such a great post. Especially fun that you were in Cape May - our family is in Lewes - right across the bay where the ferry goes. That's where all of my early summer memories were made! Doug and I keep meaning to take the long way down to DE and stay in Cape May for a night and take the ferry over. Have you ever read John McPhee's The Pine Barrens? Fascinating. Happy Fourth to you and Pam.
I did a triathlon in Cape May (Exit 0!) at the beginning of June. The ferry takes you out into the Delaware Bay (or is the Atlantic Ocean?) and you jump 13 feet off the ferry and swim a mile back to the beach. I’m no longer competitive with anyone but myself, but as Wendell Berry beautifully puts it, “For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.”
I always say being a loved Labrador Retriever in my next life seems like a step up the food chain, especially since the food has improved.
Ha! Pam did two marathons at Cape May back in the day. It’s a beautiful spot—before we left we made reservations for next year!
Aw, this is SO lovely David, and thank you for referencing my post. Honestly, I could feel you in those waves and it made me long for the shore - and also helped me to understand I can find that feeling in the present. Such a great post. Especially fun that you were in Cape May - our family is in Lewes - right across the bay where the ferry goes. That's where all of my early summer memories were made! Doug and I keep meaning to take the long way down to DE and stay in Cape May for a night and take the ferry over. Have you ever read John McPhee's The Pine Barrens? Fascinating. Happy Fourth to you and Pam.
Your piece struck a chord with me—obviously. Thanks for the inspiration.
And—I haven’t read Pine Barrens, though we drove through them on our way down to Cape May. Had no idea he had written about something so New Jersey.
Beautifully expressed, David. Loved reading this.
I'm glad you enjoyed it--but not surprised, that's so much what you write about.
It’s in our minds. It’s in our hearts, too. That feeling isn’t gone for good. It can be there when you pray or when you meditate.
It’s in the ocean’s waves. Especially with youngsters and their squeals of pure joy. However fleeting it is we know it.
"However fleeting it is we know it." Yes to that.