By the sea

By the sea…
Another story, Wade.

If you haven’t realized by now, I love stories. Telling them, and hearing them. Collecting stories. Learning and teaching. Wisdom, beauty, truth and love. Humorous and poignant. Simple or deep.

There was once a girl who liked going to the beach, because she liked the sea. Her favourite activity at the beach was picking seashells. She liked running on the beach as well, and sometimes she would skip along and sing. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t hear herself because the waves were so loud.

One day, she got an invitation to go fishing. That was exciting, and she was eager to land her first fish, didn’t matter how big or small it was. Actually, she didn’t even mind if she didn’t catch any of her own fish, she was content just to see how the experts did it, and celebrate their achievements and maybe learn some tips from them. She folded up her jeans and waded in. She didn’t go very far before she noticed that some weight was pulling on the hem of one leg of her folded-up jeans. Probably some seaweed, she thought. So she did a bit of a jiggle, and hoped that whatever it was would drift away. She was quite engrossed in her fishing and didn’t realize that the thing was still there. She panicked a bit then, and checked to see that it wasn’t a jellyfish or something dangerous. Guess what she found?

It was a necklace of glass beads, hooked to her jeans. They looked like diamonds, but surely they couldn’t be diamonds. So she unhooked the necklace, and threw it out to sea. And she went on fishing. She caught one fish, which was very exhilarating. But occasionally she wondered where the necklace she had thrown away had gone. Had someone else who liked collecting trinkets on the beach find it? And would they consider the necklace a treasure to add to their collection? And she felt a bit sad, but didn’t let it bother her too much, because it would be nice for someone else more deserving to be happy and enjoy the surprise of discovering the necklace.

But when she had gone further down the shore, she realized that there was something sparkling on the sand a distance away. Could it be? Was it the necklace? She wasn’t sure if she should get out of the water to have a closer look or to continue fishing. What was more important? She hated making difficult decisions like that.

I think at the moment, she’s still in the water, fishing. But I think she’s not very focused, although she knows that it is important to be whole-hearted in everything we want to do well. I really hope that she will make the right choice. I’m sure you do too.
So my dear reader, say a little prayer for our little fishergirl, and may her Father who loves her help her to find the joy and peace in whatever she does to honour him. Only time will tell, whether she finds that necklace again, or not. Maybe that necklace was meant to be hers after all, and someday she can still wear it as she goes fishing, but even if the sparkle on the sand is just some bits of glass, maybe it’s time for her to rest a little and collect seashells on the shore. And maybe, some of her singing will bring a little encouragement to the passers-by who come close enough to hear the song, though the waves continue to crash against the shore.