Tiny Shells, Sand Dollars, Jelly Fish, and Powdery Fine Sand

When I think of our beach in Gulf Shores, I think of tiny shells, sand dollars, jelly fish, and powdery fine sand.

For as long as I can remember I loved to collect the tiniest shells and keep the in an old glass pop bottle. They were my treasures! 

Eventually I upgraded this hobby to sand dollar hunting. This was much more difficult, which made it more rewarding and more of a challenge. Searching for sand dollars really varied each year. Sometimes there seemed to be so many scatter about the sand bars and other times not at all. My back and neck would be sore from being hunched over for prolonged periods of time as I surveyed the shoreline… I remember my fourth grade boyfriend (who also vacay’d in GS) brought me back a gift box full of sand dollars he found on the beach. Oh gosh, those were kept in my top dresser drawer for a long time, probably too long. Haha!

Just like sand dollars, jelly fish have their highs and lows. Sometimes you might go for a walk and find tons washed ashore and other years not so much. This year I haven’t seen very many washed up…. While walking the beach, it’s easy to walk around them. In the ocean is another story. I’ve seen jelly fish pass me by in the ocean, but I’ve never spotted one as it stung me. Gosh, it’s quite a pain, but only for a second. It scares you enough to race out of the ocean and light a fire inside everyone else run out of the ocean as well.  Although it burned, I liked looking at the mark left by it’s tentacle. I could see the bumps wrap around my leg, the signature of a jelly fish leaving its mark.

The older I became the less I hunted for sea shells and sand dollars. We still take long walks, but instead of searching the sand, we just talk and talk. I love the sand between my toes. For the longest time GS was the only beach I knew… The first time I travelled to a different beach, I was taken aback. I wanted the same fine, powdery white sand instead of the brown pebbly sand. 

This place, its magical to me.