I think you could fairly say today has been a bad day for our beaches. It's day 64 since the Deepwater Horizon accident. Since then oil's been here in spurts and tarballs here
and there & just looming off the coast for what seems a long long
time. Meanwhile we've seen it's horrible stain elsewhere and watched as it continues to stream into the Gulf despite many efforts to stem the flow.
We've gone to the beach to enjoy it as we love it. We've seen booms deployed. We've seen the hazmat teams at the ready and picking up what little remnant of ick that have thus far tainted our beaches. We've heard the anecdotal tales of local fisherman and we've heard the whisperings of the odd changes in coastal marine life behavior. We've prayed and we've hoped. And still we've all known that if you play the tape through to the end, with the oil still flowing and looming and impacting our seas and the wetlands in Louisiana and all along the coast, it would only be a matter of time before we began to see the larger impacts with our own eyes. And today was that day. Today it's
here, here. In a horribly ugly awful blanket, kind of "here". In a health advisory
issued kind of "here". And in a dolphin found nearby attempting to beach itself kind of "here". :(
Followed a tweet from Max Lucado this morning to a fabulous bunch of encouragements from a bevvy of people who have their eyes and thoughts on God...in how to respond to the oil spill -- and more importantly -- how to uplift and encourage our little ones, who no doubt have seen and heard things about the spill that may make them ache. I know that Bugga is completely mindful of what's happened and we have tried to share with her what is happening in an age appropriate way. She has seen images of birds and of our beaches that I'm sure have made an imprint on her. She feels the mood in the air. And since she's such an animal lover and nature lover, her response is in personification of the birds and beaches: "Oh the poor bird. He is so sad." or "The beach is crying because it's dirty." So I've often thought about and prayed for the words to say to her. And this collection of tidbits from leading authors about responding to disaster was uplifting to read today as we're seeing the worst evidence of impact yet.
Since my last post about about it, I have been asked about the local goings on and impact in regards to the oil spill. Thought I would update here and there.
Today, coming back from taking Bugga to her very first movie we saw the "containment" booms or whatever-they-are-called deployed...still no remarkable levels of visible impact on the beaches. Just a blob here and a blob there. Mostly things are the same. Not too horrible. Beaches still looking
beautiful for the most part. They really are something. Fear in the
air of course because we see the "forecasts" for the sheen off the coast
and we see what's happened elsewhere. But the mood is also hopeful.
So far the worst thing seems to be impact of lost tourism and fishing. Even that is
still not as bad as it could be, I imagine. Thank goodness.
I am so humbly honored today! The 2010 Scrappers World Awards, which were hosted and conducted over at Scrappers World Online, announced its winners yesterday. I was so SO inspired by all the pages nominated and submitted...it really was a beautiful representation of the digital scrapbooking community and the talent is just overwhelming (in a good, awe inspiring kind of way). And so I am so SO very grateful to have been included among the winners this year. Squeee!
Honorable Mention for Best Overall Layout -- Nominated
Best Use of Journaling -- Submitted
Honorable Mention for Best Layout Without a Photo -- Submitted
Best Use of Elements -- Nominated
Best Multi-Photo Layout -- Nominated
And so today I'm feeling so very full of thanks. Thank you to those who nominated my pages. And to the judges, thank you so much for this honor! It really is an honor to me, as cheesy as that sounds. So humbly, thank you.
You ever have moments when you hear just what you need to hear to throw everything into perspective? Maybe it's something that someone says in casual conversation, or maybe it's something you hear on the radio, or on tv, or read in a book...but somehow that little snippet falls into place with what you've been thinking about all day, or what you've been feeling? It's like a piece of advice you never asked for or an answered prayer, but whatever it is, it's like that person or that song or that whatever it is just "fits" right then. It's just what you need to hear.
Well anyway...I had one of those moments just now as I was editing photos of our most recent trip to the beach. We went last Thursday despite the heavy looking clouds because we were feeling that it might just be one of the last times we will be able to take Bugga to the beach and enjoy it for what it is: God's glory painted in white sands and bright emerald and blue seas and on warm breezes. Because the oil was coming. It was here. Our time was running out.
So here I am, editing these photos and smiling at the beauty of them all, but feeling that heavy feeling that I've been feeling when I look out at the sea and think of this beautiful land these days. Almost like an emerging mourning. And as I usually do while working in Photoshop, I am listening to my iTunes on shuffle. And this beautiful song by JJ Heller comes on. By the way, if you haven't heard of her, you need to. She's AMAZING. Anyway, the song is "Save Me" and despite it's almost desperate call, the tune is cheerful and bouncy, like beach music really. And I find my mood lifting and then I'm struck by the lyrics. They hit me like a revelation. I've heard this song dozens of times, I sing along almost absent-mindedly but tonight they sunk in like a balm to soothe my sad beachy soul.
The words reminded me that despite the uncertainty, despite the seemingly inevitable uglyness of this spill's aftermath, despite the sad mood in the air, the helpless feeling...God is in control and to quote JJ "the only source of all the peace I need".
Take a listen (because you so need to hear what I'm talking about. The video itself is irrelevant, but at least you can hear the song).
"Living
Am I really living
Or am I just existing
Hiding away
Danger
The world is full of danger
But if I never try to go outside
My heart will waste away
Come and save me You're the only source of all the peace I need
Come and save me
You tell me life will not be pain free
What will be will always be in your control
Darkness is light to you
And all you ask me to do
Is trust what you say is true
You are stronger
Than any terrible possible scenario today
Come and save me You're the only source of all the peace I need
Come and save me"
p.s I just looked on JJ's website and where, she's listed the lyrics is a painted scene of a beach. See? One of those "just what I needed to hear when I needed to hear it" things.