Seacoast Blvd.

 My favorite place in the world is at the end of Seacoast Blvd., in Falmouth, MA.  We have a summer place off of Seacoast Blvd.  Just about every evening, that we are down there, we walk out to the end of the Blvd., down the path, to the steps leading to the water. 

There before your eyes lies a panorama of nature that for me, packs a spiritual punch because it lifts me out of my ordinary life.  I usually sit on the steps and just contemplate the vista before me.

First, you see the boats, buoys, seagulls, terns, and maybe an osprey.  The water is clear so you might be able to pick up a crab, or even catch a fish swimming by if you’re quick or have a net.  Within swimming distance is Washburn Island.

Washburn Island is home to my family’s favorite beach.  It’s safe to say, that everyone who lives on this peninsula (Seacoast Blvd.) and has a boat, has their favorite beach spot planted on the island.

Observing Washburn Island is a lesson in theology because watching the weather and seasons caress and assault the isle reminds one of God’s care over His creation: clothing Adam and Eve in their nakedness, marking Cain to protect him, protecting David from King Saul’s wrath, freeing Peter from prison, etc. 

²⁶ Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value than they?  Matt 6: 26

God has a plan and it’s not the one we planned.  What am I talking about?  I’m specifically thinking of hurricanes.  I love to rush down to the end of Seacoast Blvd. to see what Mother Nature has done after the Cape has been hit with a hurricane.  More often than not, Washburn Island is literally broken.  The crashing waves and relentless wind break through the land so there are two islands—a parent and a child.  But over time, we watch the parent reach over and pull her little one close and closer until the little one is hugged by its parent.  The ocean has brought sand, silt, and rocks to fill in the break.  The two islands and now one, again.

Sitting on those stone steps you forget where you are because you’re gradually placed in a different dimension of experience.  You are in a place of light—sunlight and light reflected off the gentle motion of the waves, the clanging of the ropes on the masts of the sailboats, the clanging of the buoy, the gleeful voices of the young, the slapping waves against the rocks, the crying of the seagulls, and the tender kiss of the wind caressing your sunburnt skin.  One can’t help but fall into transcendence.  You find yourself contemplating a Divine Presence and Divine Providence.

And that’s not all.  That’s only Washburn Island.  Beyond Washburn is Vineyard Sound., home to the largest flounder in Cape Cod Bay.  And Martha’s Vineyard, which in our little Boston Whaler, is two hours away.  But who wants to boat over to that tourist trap when we have our own slice of nirvana at the end of Seacoast Blvd.

Eventually, however, you become aware that other people have walked into your space.  Well, after all, we don’t own the venue.  The path and steps at the end of Seacoast Boulevard are actually only a public Right of Way.  

Well, it’s time for others to admire the scene and hopefully experience the majesty of the view.