This is the fourth post in a series by author Susi Sahlman. This post was originally published on Susi’s blog, Sahlman Art Blog. You can check our her beautiful St. Martin themed original artwork here.
December 10, 2017 – The beach bustle was created by families, friends, music, laughter, eating and drinking. Kids enjoyed complete freedom in the sun, sand, and surf. Parents were carefree. That was us some twenty years ago after falling head over heels for SXM. We purchased a time share to be able to have the same experience yearly.
In the evenings we’d gather on the sand with cocktails or to share a bottle of wine as we’d watch the sun go down. We’d pay special attention to the horizon for the last rays of sunlight to create the elusive green flash. Us artists would be distracted by the ever-changing colors in the sky and sea. Others were able to multi-task a conversation into the experience.
After the sun would set we’d gather the kids and head back to our rooms to get ready for dinner. Back then it was still the Pelican and the Flamingo. These memories are precious to me. So many have come and gone as we watched each other’s children grow. Some are no longer with us, some were story tellers, some always overdid it, some gathered us together, some bragged of best meals had, some were quiet and some are still great friends.
We are all characters playing different roles. We make our appearance and hope it counts. With great hope we look forward to being able to do it again and again for as long as we can.
Standing in our favorite spot, we relived the ritual, minus drinks, people and sound. The sunset was beautiful. Such beauty alongside all of the damage caused by Hurricane Irma. It was a profound moment of silence. We had our memories that skipped through our thoughts like being in a dream. The reality though, the resort is closed this season.
As the sun disappeared we walked around by the marina and headed to dinner….just like old times.
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