Sitting still at the beach is not an option. Instead, I walk along the water’s edge and gather pebbles. That’s my way of connecting to the energy of the ocean while enriching myself with sentimental collectibles.

It’s an invigorating treasure hunt. I don’t know what precious pieces will be made available. I search, select, and evaluate. Each pebble speaks to me. It feels as if I’m curating Nature’s works of art. We establish a connection and pick each other. Actually, the activity itself creates a sense of abundance.

Gathering beach pebbles is contemplative

Each of these everlasting pebbles has a mysterious fate. How does it experience birth, death, and renewal? As such, the immensity of the unknown is palpable on the beach. This seemingly simple activity of walking on the tide-caressed sand brings the mystery of nature into my own life.

Maria Popova of Brainpickings introduced me to Erwin Chargaff’s 1978 autobiography titled Heraclitean Fire: Sketches from a Life Before Nature. Chargaff writes: “A small boy begins by being unable to explain the explainable, but when he grows old he often looks away from what cannot be explained. I am grateful that fate has preserved me from this form of blindness. Surrounded by a surfeit of solved riddles, I am still struck by how little we understand.”

Emerging out of the foam

Thus, the mere act of intently looking is deeply satisfying. The spontaneity of it makes me happy. The ocean is continually withdrawing. Tickling the pebbles and inviting them back. Bringing more with each tide. A chance to gain as much as to loose.

The process of acquiring these sentimental collectibles is as creative as the process of arranging them

Embellishing

Next, in the garden, beach pebbles turn into brushstrokes. Every detail is a thread in a coherent story I am weaving. Each stone is an element in the visually nuanced subtext. Intentionally, I bundle up similar types to demonstrate the richness of variations in shape, color, and texture. So, I consider the ground cover, the container, and the plant.

Enhancing

Consequently, each of the beach pebbles is elevated to the status of personal sentimental collectibles, I cherish it. We communicate. In The Alchemist, Paolo Coelho says: “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” What I want is a sense of refinement. How about you? Please tell me here.

Sending secret messages