Well, I stuck around to let Joann, Megan's mom who is an amateur (i.e., really good) photographer, get some really cool pics of us. And then I was off. Running down to the water as fast as I could, as excited as a little kid. At first, I just let the sea foam churl over my feet. And then my ankles. Well, it couldn't hurt to let my knees get wet-and then I shrieked when a bigger wave of cold water came up to my waist. I stood and marveled at this creation of God's that I was experiencing. And then, it happened. A bigger wave caught me and swept me off my feet back up to shore. I laughed, choked, and spit the water out of my mouth-and then started body surfing. I mean, I was already completely soaked-what did I have to lose?!
Megan's family, in the midst of taking their family pictures, gave furtive glances in my direction when they realized I was allowing myself to be completely engulfed in the water. We were planning to eat at a seaside restaurant in a bit, and I hadn't brought any change of clothes! I had no cares in the world as I allowed the white-crested waves to sweep me back to shore over and over again. "All your waves and billows have engulfed me," says the Psalmist. Now, I know what it feels like to be completely engulfed in the billows. You. Are. Completely. Engulfed.
To be completely honest, I could have stayed there all night. I was in awe of this amazing body of water stretching out in front me, marveling at the fact that it spanned hundreds of miles away from me and contained billions of sources of life. God, You are so amazing. I don't even have words.
I heard shouting, but by this time my contacts had blurred and I could barely make out anything that wasn't about two feet from my face. After a second, Duncan came racing towards me to say that we were about to head to dinner. I dried off and changed the best I could-which consisted of wrapping myself in towels during dinner. Thankfully, we ate outside, so it didn't matter too much that I was covered in sand as well. After cavorting in the waves, I consumed a shrimp-loaded plate with a ready appetite.
Megan's parents are both incredibly funny and love to joke. I'd enjoyed being with them for the day and hearing their perspectives on different things. However, I was hardly prepared for what came next.
After we had paid our bill, Duncan left the table for a moment and Megan's dignified mother who I'd met less than 24 hours ago got the ingenious idea to run off and hide before he came back. I nearly wet my nearly-dry shorts as I bent over double, laughing hysterically as Joanne leaped over a fence to hide behind, urging us all to follow her. All seven of us ungracefully leaped over after her, landing with thuds in the sand below. All the other diners at the restaurant gave us all very disconcerting looks as we disappeared over the fence, peeking through the lattices to check for Duncan. "Here he comes! Here he comes! everybody quiet!!!"
A second later, Duncan went running past us on the way to the beach. the instant he was clear from view, we all burst out laughing again. In the deepening dusk of the evening, we could just barely make out a shape trotting down the path to the beach. Mr. Anderson turned the light on his phone and started walking down the path after the retreating figure. As I followed, he muttered that he was afraid that Duncan would jump out behind to scare him and would make him scream like a little girl. I laughed. Haha, right. That won't happen.
We traipsed further down to the ocean and stood still for a few minutes. In the distance, the waves crashing against the shore was the only sound we could hear. A figure appeared a short ways off, apparently picking up shells on the beach. Why would Duncan be picking up shells on the beach, was my first thought, but my contacts were still blurry from the ocean water earlier and I couldn't make out who it was. A second later, I turned and glanced over my shoulder-only to utter a shriek at the top of my lungs. Duncan was shooting towards me, only six feet away before I saw him, and all I had time to do was jump out of his way as he leapt past me. My scream of terror died away, but there was still a scream ringing in my ears and echoing off the sand dunes nearby. That's right. Mr. Anderson hadn't been joking about Duncan making him scream. I fell over laughing as he started chasing Duncan, then picked myself up to help Mr. Anderson carry out some righteous indignation upon Duncan. This story has now become a highlight of our tails about Jacksonville. We headed home for the night to our temporary resting place of Megan's home, ready for a long night of sound sleep.
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