Travel

While in Mexico, I picked up some iridescent shells to bring home. I turned them into small, ring holders by stacking an upside down one as a base and upright ones onto it, and adhering with glue.

Then, decorated them with some vintage blingy bits in oceany colors.  These two, I mailed to my sisses along with two heart shaped abalone heart pendants that I bought for them there too.

This makes  me want to go back to the beach to gather more shells to embellish!

We spent the week of Thanksgiving in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  I fell in love with the views on the beach, this area is a bay, with mountains ringing the sea.  It was very different from other seaside trips I've taken, complete with a warning to watch for crocodiles swimming in the waves.

Really???  

I was fascinated by the idea, but never saw one, till we took a ride around the golf course we were staying at and found some in the little ponds near the ocean.

Everyone says that these guys are not as aggressive as the gators in Florida, and will leave you alone if you don't mess with them.  I was just fine with not poking the crocs and making them angry.  So, I really wasn't worried, and was actually hoping to see some swimming by in the ocean.  Especially since I wasn't splashing around in the water myself. The beach was a little rough for me to go out on my own, and my husband isn't a salt water fan. We strolled up the sand throughout the day, swam in the pool, and read books in the shade by the water, waded along the shore, but didn't swim out into it. 

I do adore playing in waves, but not enough to swim without a "buddy" to watch my back.  Funny, most of the people I travel with are not fans of jumping the waves, so I don't get to swim much on my trips. 

But I am happy as a clam, just staring at the water and watching the swells.  

Shells were few and far between in this Marina beach area.  I noticed when I was on Coronado Island, the Pacific offered up very few shells during my stay there too.  Maybe it is where I am looking?  Or the time of day?  

But I was able to find a handful, and look, just enough to make a fairy! And while there weren't many, there were just enough, and they were iridescent and quite nice.  I found these small white blooms in the sand and gave them to her to hold.

Every time I visit a shore, whether a lake, river, or sea, I try to leave a fairy behind as a thank you. I often wonder if they are found, and picture the smile on a little girl's face if she comes across one.  Usually I create them on my last day, so I never know what happens.  But a couple of times, I've made them earlier, and have checked back.  My last Siesta Key fairy held a jade heart that I'd brought, and I thought that treasure would be scavenged quickly, but it was still there two days later, and the fairy was also still complete.  This little fae, didn't fare as well.  Within hours, she was stepped on and gone, her bits and pieces scattered.

 When I make them, I know they are ephemeral, and not long for the world.  Sometimes we create art hoping it will last forever, but honestly, it is the creating itself that means so much.  The process brings joy to me.  As do the beaches I leave these on.  I make them as thank you to nature for the beauty i've enjoyed by the water.

Our Siesta Key trip was, as always, just wonderful.  We were thrilled to see that the area was undamaged by Irma, and all of the people I talked to had survived with little or no damage.  Mostly some unpleasant heat and discomfort from the power outage, no lasting devastation or injuries.  

Every beach trip I make, I leave a little fairy made from gathered elements as a thank you.  This time, I brought along a jade heart to add to the sprite to say my heart was with them during the storm.

This gal was left at the edge of the grassy area along the shore and I made her mid week instead of as I was leaving.  I enjoyed visiting her for the next few days, and was surprised to see that she was still hanging out, with no issues other than her little dress blowing away.  Her itsy bitsy pinafore was a crab shell, and was light weight, so blew off in the breeze.

I gave her a more solid shell change of clothes, and that seemed to hold up better.

The jade heart was still there on our last day, and the fairy was still flitting about on the sand.  I wonder if the heart will be discovered soon, or if the stone will be buried in the sand to be found years from now as a treasure by some child building a sand castle?

Before heading back to Kansas, I left a big sister fairy on the sand next to the first little girl. 

What I needed was more time at the beach to make one more sister, so I'd have a trio like my sisses and myself!