One year ago today . . .

. . . my feet hit the luscious sand of Myrtle Beach to begin my dream-chasing adventure of living at the beach and being a writer.  Remembering that feeling makes my heart flip all over again.  I felt like I was home.  Of course I had buttloads of stuff to unpack and figure out where to stash in the dinky condo I had rented, but I was home.  Finally.
   I could sit and stare at Mother Ocean and feel the relaxed peace only she brings me.  I could commune with the sun and moon, nothing separating us but the waves.  I could walk the sand and let my mind be absolutely empty except for the splish splash of the ocean and shrill of the seagulls.  All of those joys I could have any time I wanted.  What a blessing!  I miss it, I miss it all.
   I wish I could understand why this Missouri gal loves the beach so much, why that place so far away from me is the only place that truly feels like home.  I wish I could look around me at the autumn leaves and gentle hills and plentiful lakes here and smile and let that be enough to make me happy.  But I can't.  My heart just doesn't feel that way.
   Guess that's why the title of my blog is "Life Be Crrr-azy."  Because it is.  I am here, but my heart is there.  I can wish all I want to, but that doesn't make it so.  I'd better start wishing again to win the lottery, that way I can trip down to the beach when my heart needs a fix without having to run away all over again.  Or if the lotto doesn't come through for me, I can settle for reading about my beach adventures in my memoir.  That would be cheaper, for sure.  But it wouldn't be the same as feeling that luscious warm sand between my toes, feeling the cool waves lapping over my feet, or feeling the sun and beach breeze on my face.  Not the same at all.
   When will my life go south again?  I wish I knew.