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| Navarre Beach in late December |
Last month, Terry and I visited Navarre Beach twice, once early in the month and again during New Year’s Week. Winter on the beach is a new experience for us.
You may remember that I found a sand dollar during that first visit. I turned it into an ornament for the little tree I put up in the condo.
On our second visit, I undecorated the tree and packed up our Christmas decorations.
When I took the sand dollar off of the tree, I’m certain that I didn’t drop it. In fact, I‘d swear I placed it carefully on the top of the chest. But the next time I looked down, it was in pieces.
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| Maybe it imploded? |
You may also remember it’s not the first time one of those little treasures has crumbled on me. I was more philosophical this time and concentrated on being grateful for finding it in the first place—and for how cute it had looked on the tree. Some things are just too fragile to survive in this world.
Isn’t that how much of life is? We experience fleeting moments of joy or satisfaction, but we can’t hold onto them or the people involved—except in our hearts as we savor the memory.
Just as I anticipated more joyful times, I had hopes of finding more sand dollars. Maybe even during that trip. That day. Remembering Heidi’s admonishment last year, “But you have to go out early,” I bundled up and took off for the beach.
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was in for a wonderful surprise and amazed at what awaited me. By the time I returned home, I had as many small sand dollars as I could hold in both hands.
 To top it off, I found an orderly array of perfect specimens spread out on the counter that Terry had collected on another part of the beach.
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| We were sand dollar rich. |
That was the only day we found sand dollars. Since then, I’ve pondered why that morning was different from all the other days I had diligently searched.
- Maybe the winter surf is different.
- Maybe it’s the season for sand dollars.
- Maybe I’ve never gone out quite so early before.
- Maybe it’s all of the above.
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| Or maybe, some days, God just wants to surprise and delight us. |
Wherever you are, whatever your desires, I wish you a day filled with joyful surprises.
Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves in them.
Psalm 69:34
Psalm 69:34
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Copyright © Reflections from Dorothy’s Ridge 2015. All rights reserved
Reflections from Dorothy 
Oh, I loved reading this. My heart broke when I saw your sand dollar had broken… and then I kept reading and you were blessed with more! What a perfect story and thought and intention to use for my day and the coming days ahead.
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Beautiful reflection of surprises!!
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Love your photo story, Dorothy. I have a souvenir sand dollar hidden someplace. Just couldn't put my hands on it at the moment lol.
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Thank you, Georgeanne. It truly felt like a blessing.
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Thank you, Melissa. Appreciate you reading and commenting.
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Thanks, Freeda. The little ones are really fragile!
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Great post! Hope blogger lets me comment! Ha.
Um…maybe whenever we determine to be thankful in all circumstances, it's like paying it forward, and God pays back with interest? 😉
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Thank you, Katherine. That's how it felt that day.
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