I lived for a few years in Carmel and was a member of the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I went every week! I really looked close (and talked to) all of the creatures in their fantastic underwater world. I touched all that I could. It was a wet world of incredible magic. Nature outdid itself a trillion fold with these creations. I always went home in awe.
Did I mention I also love clams and oysters? Oh and the nautilus. Did I tell you I love sea shells and also sea sponges? I lived on Pine Island in Florida for a year and found all sorts of incredible shells on Sanibel and Cayo Costa Islands nearby. I had never seen so many beautiful whole shells in so many colors washed up on shore, many with creatures still in them. It felt as if the ocean had an unlimited supply. I painted shells on t-shirts and hats and greeting cards. "How do those creatures make these beautiful shells things?" I wondered constantly. Years later, I found sea sponges washed up on land on Corsica. They were exactly the same kind you see for sale in art stores and they were scattered everywhere washed ashore. (Corsica is an island off of France that I lived on for 3 months. It is spectacular. But that's another story.) In Baja Mexico, near Guerrero Negro, while visiting the grey whales, I discoverd big giant huge Lions Mane Scallop Shells. They make great soap dishes. Or to put food in. Or anything...they are amazing.
I have sea shells and fish pictures and fish tiles all over my bathroom. There's a great thought stimulating book I love by Anne Morrow Lindbergh called Gift From the Sea. She uses sea shells to tell stories and make analogies about spirals of life and compares them in thought-provoking ways. Once you read it, you will always think of her when you think of beaches and sea shells. Okay, that's enough about that for now. Bye
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