Missed by Most

   People love to be on the beach. Both locals and tourists flock to the beach when the weather is nice, all for a variety of reasons. Of course there is the water to swim in, wade in or maybe even surf in.

   Then the sun beckons folks. Some for warmth, some for browning the skin, and some because of the openness of the beach and the majesty of that great ball in the sky.

   But I realize that most beach goers miss the allure of the beach in the predawn hours. The quietness of the air, but also the lapping of the water on the tidal river and the sometimes roar of the waves oceanside.

   Arriving there at Gould's Inlet this morning around 6:15, I found I was the only car in sight. The sky was showing a little light, and the moon was still high in the heavens.

   The small waves of the high tide were lapping at the shore of the tidal river.

   The shoreline afforded very little space to walk between the waves of the receding high tide and the perpetual fluffy sand, a small strip of relatively firm sand next to the water.

   But that did not matter much at this time of morning, there were few walkers out this early anyway.

   As the sky began to color some orange next to the horizon, clumps of marsh grass pointed to the high water mark of the previous incoming tide.

   As the time approached the sunrise hour, a few more brave souls awakened and stirred on the sand.

   The sky lightened, the colors deepened, the clouds gave emphasis to the whole landscape.

   And the ocean waves, albeit small, gave a deeper roar, as they rolled toward the shoreline.

   Human activity stalled and then stopped as those who had made it to the beachfront stopped to watch the sun appear over the ocean on the horizon.

   Folks gazed and loved the sight, but really did not know what they had missed in the previous hour.

   My favorite beach time of all, the quiet semi-dark hours before the world begins another new day.

   God's handiwork and His Mercies and Grace.

   New every morning even when it is hard to see.