Signs Of Love Along The Way

A WAVE does not ask to be remembered when it recedes into the ocean and melts back into the sea … neither does a grainy bit of beach sand.

Made of similar matter we humans, however, want to leave our mark and it can seem disrespectful when the memory of someone is neglected. It is the magic of our remembering that keeps people from the past alive.

We were here and we want that acknowledged. So we name everything from bridges to airports to roads and buildings after larger than life figures who had monumental impact in our world and perhaps great wealth.

In recent years we found different ways to commemorate the less known that touched our hearts more personally. Most of the parks I visit nowadays have benches and many have plaques.

Currently I believe a basic bench, along with a plaque, requires a donation of three thousand dollars to the City of Surrey. This ensures the bench will be maintained for ten years after which there is a renewal fee.

The plaque to the left reads, "Tis a simple seashell, one out of which the pearl has gone. The shell was nothing, leave it there; the pearl - the soul - was all, is here."

In another visit to Crescent Beach I rested my back on a plaque that says,
"Warm summer sun shine kindly here. Warm summer wind blow softly here."

In words as few as a modern day Tweet, what would you say about yourself or a loved one and where would you etch such a special note?

I wonder if I could craft a message that is as poignant and concise as the one above that says, "The magic of our love will forever dance."

The wording on most benches strives to be uplifting and imaginative. Plaques are gifts placed where all are welcome to sit and contemplate, enhanced by a desire to inspire while keeping the memory of a loved one alive.

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

To see more sights from around the globe visit Our World at the sidebar.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

Stones Tell Tales At Crescent Beach

SNIPPETS of writings merging the past and present are etched in stones and scattered alongside the pathways at Crescent Beach in South Surrey. I learned there are 33 memory stones marked with thoughts gathered by artist Tina Farmilo.

Thirteen stones are arranged in a circle like pages torn from a diary by a grassy knoll. I see people meditating there sometimes amid the fragmented stories of days gone by. Aboriginal peoples, pioneers and families reach out as if from a dream or a poem. Is not "leaf shaker's moon" a lovely way to convey winter is coming?

Guided by the seasons, most words express respect for the weathered land and the sea that influenced their everyday lives.

I enjoyed reading the notes on stones amid the thousands of timeless, wordless rocks also in the area. These strong silent types laze around all day without having a single thing to say.

As an afterthought, inspired by a comment from Jen of Muddy Boot Dreams, I include a picture of another one of the 33 stones that speaks for itself at Crescent Beach. It says, “ … years of summer children running barefoot free in the dusty roads ‘til dusk and the horn of the night train calls them home.”

I suspect an inward search can unearth similar wonder at any age ... even when trains are less melodic, and too frequent, and dusty roads are paved and cracked. In early childhood each new moment becomes a piece of forever inscribed into memories that shape future perspectives.

This stone, capped by a pair of lost gloves, speaks for a girl who in 1929 was excited about her stay at a local camp. “Oh boy,” she said, “we get two plates of all if we want. My little brother got three helpings and we are in the water all day and there’s bonfires on the beach at night and I like this better than Christmas.”

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

To see more sights from around the globe visit Our World at the sidebar.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms