It’s been one of those weeks. Busy, yet quiet. Full, yet empty.

Sophie, Morgan, Eli, Hannah and I joined Regi at an engagement in Pensacola Beach over Memorial Day weekend. Friends, family and the beach: the perfect way to begin our summer. When we returned, I thought for sure some magical fairies would have packed for me. They didn’t and now my house is a wreck. Open boxes, sealed plastic containers, to-be-purged pile, and to-be-stored pile all growing by the minute. I simply want to close on Point A so that we can get to Point B. I’m done with where I’ve been, ready to move on.

Ever feel like you’re barely holding on?

My favorite day over the weekend was the one spent at Navarre Beach. The clear and shallow water (for the most part) was amazing. I knew the depth of the water by the color of the blue. Dark blue=deep. Light blue=shallow. Bluish white=sand bar. Our goal was to follow the bluish white because it would take us to places we otherwise wouldn’t go. My petite eight-year-old niece was with us and I have to admit, she has a mind of her own. I figured she knew that that to go back to shore, she had to carefully follow the sand bar after telling me she was heading back to collect seashells. She didn’t realize the current threw us a little off track while swimming and that she’d have to adjust her path in order to follow the sand bar back in.

She headed towards Regi who was near shore. He’s not a good swimmer so anything below the knee and he’s of no use if you need him to rescue you. The main difference between us is that I don’t worry very much when it comes to the water because I grew up around it. He didn’t, so I’m always telling him he worries too much. When I saw Hannah go sloshing back to shore, I didn’t think much of it. But Regi already knew what was about to happen.

And it did. Her short little legs stepped into the dark blue and she was forced to tread water without really knowing how. I was out of reach and didn’t even realize she had encountered choppy water. Regi yelled for me to notice while starting out to the deep, knowing that he’d be in trouble soon. I began swimming towards her, the adrenalin pushing each stroke. She wasn’t so far that I wouldn’t get to her in time, but you know that feeling of “What if?” Regi signaled a gentleman closer to help when he realized he couldn’t go further. Hannah did her best to swim into his waiting arms; he grabbed her and delivered her to shore. I got a strong talking to by my husband.

The situation ended without great alarm but it certainly could have gone another way.

Ever feel like you’re doing more than holding on? Like squeezing someone’s hand so tightly that you’re cutting off his (the) circulation. Like treading water in a deep ocean for longer than you’d like. Your alternative would be to give up and simply drown, but you’ve got some fighting spirit in your veins. The lifeguard is in site but he sure is taking his time. And hello?! Questioning why he is taking his sweet time doesn’t help—he knows the water is deep and you have no option but to cling to the hope that help is about to show up.

We are all faced with moves/changes in our lifetime. It’s not fun, it’s not easy, and it doesn’t happen instantaneously because a magical elf shows up and does all the work. Today I don’t have much more to tell you than this.

Hold on. Persevere. Launch out into the deep. And don’t be afraid to follow the sand bar…but don’t be surprised if you’re thrown a little off course and need some extra help reaching your destination.

The day on the beach was worth the hassle and ended with many laughs and sand in places we never intended. Trust me. It takes a lot more than a few rough seas to throw us completely off course.

Now excuse me while I get back to packing. There’s an adventure out there and I don’t want to miss it!