Cape Hatteras entered my life at the young age of 3...maybe even before. There are pictures of a very cute little Coley sporting a bikini (prob for the first and last time in my life) on the steps in the sand with the famous lighthouse in the distance. According to my parents, they wanted to take a little vacation and that's where they ended up. Shortly after it became an annual vacation with family and friends. There are pictures of my cousin Leah and me playing in the sand and smiling with our buckets. One trip, my mom and aunt were pregnant with Megan and Katy (respectively) and somehow the truck got stuck while driving on the beach...Granny ended shoveling sand from the tires with Leah and my little kiddie shovels. I mean, that memory alone is priceless. There are so many more memories that take me back to that beautiful piece of heaven.
Cape Hatteras also holds a special place in my heart because it gave me peace when I needed it most. A couple months after my cousin Melissa died, my family took one of our last trips to Hatteras. It had been a rough couple of months for my family. Lots of changes, tears, and grief that I hadn't quite come to terms with. I was angry at God for letting this happen. I was angry at myself for not being able to deal with it. I had just finished my first year of college and it was one that was really rough. Basically...I was lost. The good news was that I had come home.
While spending our week at the beach, I snuck off for a walk. I took the walk in hopes that I could catch the sunset over the sound. Truly one of the most beautiful sights in the world. I made it to the sound just in time. I found a spot and just sat and watched it. The sky turned into an array of magical colors. Oranges, purples, pinks, and yellows swirled together to make a sky that only God could create. That's when it hit me. A God that can make such a beautiful sky, that could create babies, bless my life with wonderful family and friends has to know what He's doing. Even when I don't understand it (and rarely I do), He knows what He's doing it.
It would take another year or two to have complete peace with the situation, but that was the first huge step. I had felt peace and I savored it. Ever since, Cape Hatteras represents peace to me. I love it. It is a place where I can truly be myself and have complete harmony with the world.
Earlier this month my mom asked if I wanted to spend a few days on the coast over Spring Break. It was a complete spontaneous trip, and usually I don't like things like that, but when Hatteras is in the cards, I will always be up for it.
I hear the waves and seagulls calling...I can't wait.
This is a fitting date to publish this post. 6 years ago today (as I put this on here on 4-14-11), I lost my cousin, Melissa, to cancer. She was a beautiful person with a beautiful spirit. I remember her in the best way, in my mind I am a little girl in her wedding, and she is happy and smiling. I think that's how she would want it, so that is how I choose to remember her. Miss you Melissa.
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