It was one of those 95 degree, humid days. I walked down the street with my dog, feet flip-flopping against the hot pavement. In ten minutes, I would be on the beach, but until then, I stopped to chat with a neighbor under a leafy tree.
“You have a beach pass?” she asked.
“You don’t?” I said back.
“Uch, I guess I could go get one down at town hall….” she said.
“No, no!” I told her how easy it was to get a pass right at the beach. No town hall needed! But, why I was explaining this to her? I’m the Rhode Island newbie here. She’s been a resident for years.
She shook her head no. Even so, she refused to get a pass. “I feel like, for all the taxes we pay, they should just give it to us for free,” she said. “It’s my way of taking a stand.”
I believe that having a town beach is a perk and not a civil right. I shared this point of view and then we waved goodbye.
Although I live only a mile or two from the Barrington town beach, and just steps away from a private access point, I am always surprised by how different the weather is on the water. It’s windier, usually, and cooler, but it’s not just that. There is a shift of mood, a briny breeziness. Nature is more alive on the bay, and because of that, I feel more alive when I’m on the bay, too.
Wow, my neighbor is really showing them, isn’t she? I thought a few minutes later, closing my eyes and listening to the gulls squawk, the waves roll.
“I’m more of a pool person,” Another friend shrugged … read the full article on The Huffington Post