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The Captain watches the sea for enemy pirate ships |
He calls me “mate” and I call him “captain”. He is three
years old and I am not. And yet recently, for several days in Naples, Florida,
his imagination held me captive. He
marches through his world carrying a plastic sword and a telescope, scouting
for “the bad pirates”, and like a loyal mate, I followed behind him. The couch
became our “safe ship”, where no one could hurt or attack us. Everyone should have
such a place in their life.
Off duty, his name is Drew and he calls me JoJo. He is the son of my niece, who, along with
her husband, has recently moved to beautiful Naples, a well-to-do city on
Florida’s Gulf coast where at a four-way stop, I encountered a Maserati, an
Austin Healy and a Jaguar. I fortunately was driving a rented Lincoln SUV, so
it looked like I fit it. (Although I may have been the only one with my mouth
hanging open). This is where the wealthy snow birds, as Floridians love to call
those northern pests that annually stoke the Florida economy, live and play for
several months of the year.
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No....these are not bathing suit tops! |
Here, residents shop in furniture stores that have valet
parking, and lingerie stores that sell jewel-studded bras (this one still has me
baffled). Multi-million dollar homes
line the palm covered coastline and life is good….if you’re into this kind of thing.
And who wouldn’t be? Well….maybe me. I admittedly would love to have the “means”
to live among the rich and botoxed beautiful, but it would have to be on my
terms. Which, probably wouldn’t match the standards of those wearing Jimmy Choo
sandals to the beach, so I would have to insist they lower them.
Although, on one evening outing, I surprisingly discovered a
group that definitely doesn’t fit the typical Naples profile, dancing on the
beach as the sun was setting. After a
lovely dinner out, the family decided to head to the coast to catch the sun
setting over the Gulf. It was partly cloudy, which amazingly is what makes a
spectacular sunset. And as we approached, we could hear tribal drums banging in
the distance.
After climbing the steps over the dunes, we saw a large
gathering of what looked like the lost flower-powered children of the sixties, surrounded
by torches, gyrating to the rhythm of the beat, wearing feathers, beads and
tie-dyed shirts. There were hundreds of them swaying in the breeze and
seemingly waving to the setting sun. They were generous in spirit and routinely
motioned to the gathering of gawkers to join in and dance. Upon questioning, I found that they meet every
two weeks to honor and say good night to the fading sun. The drums get louder
as the large orange glow drops beyond the horizon, and they raise their waving
arms in unison until the last spark of light seemingly sinks into the water.
As the light disappeared, the crowed started to disperse and
we walked the captain across the street for some ice cream. The juxtaposition
(have been waiting to use that word since Journalism 101) of the Naples on the
other side of the dunes and the Naples on the beach, amazed me. Within a few
steps, we left the earth’s natural elements of wind, water, fire and free
spirits, and stepped back into the land of luxury cars and lavish condos.
Now, back home in my kitchen, sitting at my counter,
drinking from my coffee cup, I’m feeling a little territorial as I reflect
about lifestyles and Naples. It is beautiful and my niece and her family will
thrive there. And with brothers, sister-in-laws, nieces, and nephews, I have
much family in Florida now and will return as often as I can….but most likely
never live there.
I believe that seasons give texture to life and I need them
to thrive in my own lifestyle. But being able to vacation in the south and live
in the north is a bit like having the best of both worlds. And…..as long as
there is a ship’s captain calling for his mate to help in his quest to rid the
world of bad pirates, I will always be just a plane ride away.
Naples is calling me!
ReplyDeleteYes, and it is saying "Hey Betty, bring your sister back for a visit". LOL
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post, Jo!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jess, appreciate your reading it! Betty's grandson owns me lol
ReplyDeleteLovely Read, you sure have a way with words, thank you!
ReplyDelete