Serenity Now, 2012
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Back in July I wrote about my dislike of being a “tourist,” and used as the focal
point for that essay a day spent in Monterey, California. Two months later, I
haven’t changed my impression about Monterey. Aside from a terrific aquarium,
the old cannery row is a tourist trap.
But
enough about that. Today I speak up for a few moments of serenity that also occurred
in Monterey.
In
the daytime Monterey is overrun with tourists. But like a lot of places that
are popular with tourists during the daytime, the early morning presents a very
different impression.
We
stayed just outside of the main tourist area at a place that was just across
the street from the Pacific Ocean. At sunrise this little stretch of beach was
quiet and, with the exception of just a few people walking their dogs, I had
the place to myself. I wish you could have heard it.
Monterey Bay meets the shore here with none of the drama of points further out on the
Monterey Peninsula. There’s an intelligently landscaped park between the street
and the beach. Fog obscured the long view and softened the edges of things.
I
walked along the beach until I came to what looked like the only working wharf
left on the downtown waterfront. A few fishermen were preparing their nets for
the day. Occasionally you heard the chug-chug-chug of a fishing boat headed out
for albacore.
Across
the harbor I heard seals making their distinction guttural bark. It took a
while for me to realize that the sea lions were fighting among themselves for
space on the transom (the back) of a small commercial fishing boat. As I
watched them jump up onto the boat and make space by pushing other sea lions
off of the boat, a harbor policeman approached and explained that so many sea
lions had recently been trying to sun on the deck of another commercial fishing
boat that their weight had caused the boat to capsize in the harbor.
Sometimes
your serenity comes with a little humor from the natural world. It sure did for
me that morning in Monterey.
The San Giovanni, 2012
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