Everything Taylor Swift!

Holy Ground - Your favorite city/place and the memories you have from it

My favorite place in the whole world is the beach. It's a particular beach in Florida my family and I go to every summer. We've gone the last two years and we're going this year a couple of weeks from now. It's become a sort of tradition, really. It's a beautiful place, half touristy and half retirement-home-isty. Most of the people there are kids, young adults, and parents, but you'll surely spot lots of seniors living their best lives as well. I have so many memories of this place, the overall message being: this is the best spot in the entire world. First of all, let's start with the village. And I don't mean a teeny community with huts and woven baskets. I mean this total out-of-your-TV, outdoor shopping plaza/square with brick stores holding everything from clothing, to sunscreen, to bar & grills, and more! Last year I actually went ziplining across the lake they have! String lights hang over everything, giving it a very cozy, comfortable feeling. I remember getting a huge scoop of chocolate ice cream with a cone from this one place, and delicious mint chocolate chip gelato from another. Next, there's this one restaurant really close to the beach that we go to incredibly often. I remember sitting at a table and looking out at the view of the tropical plants and ocean and inhaling the sea breeze and thinking, Wow. How am I so lucky I get to be here?! I think we got wings there once, but I might be mistaken. Instead of recalling different foods, I just remember all the color. Bright, popping color that almost seems too pretty to eat! I took some pictures, so I'm sure I'll figure out the food if I try. And finally, the beach itself! The long, wooden walkway that leads to these wide, wooden stairs that have sand scattered all over them! Stepping for the first time onto the blazing hot sand and kicking your flip-flops up into your hands and running to find a place to dump your stuff on the crowded beach so you can get into the water! And the water, not cold, not hot, but just the right warm temperature! Swimming out into the waves, not too deep, but at just the right spot where you can bob over the waves before they break. Or riding the waves when they break, letting the ocean push you back to shore and pull you in again like a tug-of-war between you and Mother Nature. And no matter what happens, you're winning. I think the only negative memory I associated with the ocean at one point was when, last summer or the year before that, I can't remember, there was a purple flag flying. The color of the flags communicate different things, like how rough the waters are and that sort of thing. Purple, however, told you that there were "marine pests" in the waters. Jellyfish, stingrays, and even some dangerous fish! However, there were lots of people at the beach, so we didn't (at least I didn't) think much of it. My sibling and I had just gotten these really cool boogie boards from this beach-themed store chain, Alvin's Island. It's all over Florida, and in the place I was, you couldn't drive down the road for two minutes before stumbling across one. Anyway, the boards probably weren't built for the ocean, because we didn't realize we had gotten considerably deep into the water. And generally, the ocean is pulling you in more than pushing you back, I think, at least if you're just floating. Our parents noticed us eventually and started shouting for us because now we were actually really far away. As soon as we heard them we started freaking out because we thought there was some scary sea monster thing about to murder us then and there (it also didn't help that I had recently watched Jaws)! We fought our way back to them, but I was really struggling. Why? Dear Reader (TAYLOR REFERENCE AHHH), I am short. And small. And that combination does not make for an excellent wave-fighter. My sibling was half swimming, half dragging me back to them. When we finally rejoiced close to the shore, they explained how far out we'd gone, and I was just the tiniest bit freaked out. Okay, a lot freaked out. However, that didn't stop me from plunging back in (boogie-board-less, of course) the water moments later, if maybe a little closer to them. That's just it, what I love so much about the beach and the village and everything related. There's that wild, happy energy that fills you up till you're about to burst because you're in the most exhilarating place in the world, and how can you not smile so wide and jump around and scream with pure delight? (This is verging on hysteria, but don't blame me. Even thinking about this spot, my spot, makes me want to do all three.) But yeah. This is the best place, my favorite place ever, and it always will be.