Slow and Steady

Beautiful Tragedy

The salty mist cooled my skin, warm from the beaming sun. The sun's yellow rays disappeared from the view I held of my book. Disfigured palm fronds and my black sunglasses shaded the book's crisp pages.

The sun's blonde sheen blinded me as I managed to raise my head to take a look at the figure coming toward me. Lifting my eyes above my dark sunglasses for a brief second, I looked at my husband's smiling face. The sand shifted around my foot as Daniel groaned and sat beside my beach chair, and I felt a moist tuft of his hair settle, tickling against my thigh.

We both sighed in content as we looked past the carob brown sand out to the Hawaiian waves. Baby blue waves rolled and filtered in towards the damp surface, leaving only a crystal white outline of their previous wake, before receding.

A perfect moment on a perfect day. I just wish I could be near this, smelling the air, watching this beautiful scenery, if not forever, then just a while longer, I sighed blissfully as I watched my parents and daughter; I could see their happy smiles as they played, shoulders deep within the cobalt blue water.

I playfully nudged Daniel with my knee as he moved for me to get up from my chair to head to the water. Standing with me, his hands wrapped around my waist and his arms pulled my back to his chest.

"Mama, mama!" a small voice squeaked.

Daniel and I focused our attention on the other person. I watched my brother Joshua trot towards me and Daniel. His wife, my sister-in-law Carly, followed behind him.

Josh's curly, drenched caramel brown hair bobbed as he bounced over the sand. Behind him, Carly's long, sopping rust orange-brown hair caught a breeze and stuck to her face. Water fell from their hair to their swimsuits, down to the sand.

In between them, our daughter Jackie stuck her head out past Josh's shoulder. Water droplets glistened and trickled off her small face, plastered with peach-colored sunburns, as she smiled widely at us. I made a mental note to reapply her sunscreen, and I also made a note to give her some lotion to soothe her skin so it wouldn't be irritable later on. Surrounded by her puffy life jacket and covered by her purple bathing suit, she sat on her knees, gripping onto the surfboard laid out between her aunt and uncle. My parents came from the water after a minute, drying themselves off and taking Jackie from the surfboard.

"Hey, Emma! Come on, get over here!" Carly called as she, Josh, my parents, and Jackie made their way to an area of sand. Daniel and I jogged to meet my family.

After making sandcastles with Jackie and resting for a while, Carly, Josh, Daniel, and I set off to find a cluster of rocks near a quiet section of the beach. With my mother's "take it easy, guys" warning circling in my head, I swept Daniel's hand into my own and skipped alongside him, following Carly and my brother. Climbing to the top of the nearest rocky structure and leaning forward, I looked over the clear blue water sloshing below us.

"You ready for this?" Josh asked me, carefully steadying me from the jolt of shock he gave me.

"Never do that to me again," I puffed out to my brother, slapping him on the arm.

I heard his quiet apology and turned my back to the crisp wind. Daniel and Carly were already standing further back on the rock, waiting for me and Josh. Skipping over to them, I stood close to Daniel. Interlocking our cold hands, we shared a kiss, his mouth warm against mine.

"Oh, this is gonna be fun." I smiled, looking at the people standing next to me.

Josh's bright smile and Carly's excited giggles reciprocated my enthusiasm.

"First one in buys dinner!" Carly took off screaming. Josh tried to catch up with his wife as the two of them jumped.

"Well, Carly's definitely buying dinner." Daniel and I laughed.