Day 126: Re-creation

There's nothing like a day of sleep and sun to recharge our batteries! We felt very spoiled today, relaxing on the beautiful beach of Hilton Head Island. The temperature was perfect, and the wind just right for a kite. The girls loved the hopeless challenge of filling their sand castle's moat with sea water...they wore themselves out with countless runs to the water's edge, which crept farther away with the receding tide.

Our day began with folks from home...at least in a one-sided way. We enjoyed watching the First Pres service (although as both our moms were absent from choir, things looked a bit strange!) and seeing that all is well in spite of the recent announcement of our pastor's departure next summer. Home seemed even closer this evening; Stan was manning the grill on the hotel's patio, enjoying a conversation with a man whom we'd seen on the beach with his young family. As their talk progressed, Stan learned they're from Parker, Colo., just a few miles north of C.Springs! "Small world" just doesn't seem adequate.

We'll visit Savannah and Charleston in the days ahead, and we'll be in Atlanta toward the end of the month. Considering this time in the heart of the Old South, tonight we watched the first half of "Gone With the Wind," which paints such a vivid picture of antebellum Georgia. It's very interesting to be on this epic journey at the time of the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War. We've experienced a few subtle tensions in various southern cities, and know from conversations with locals that wounds and emotions still run very deep. Kelsey summed it up as only a child can..."the white people in the south, the ones like Scarlett, were so selfish."