Outside the snow falls, it’s dark and cold. Some people really love snow. My son longs for a white Christmas every year. Memories of childhood days; snowmen, sledding, snowball fights, snow forts and missing school for snow days.

Snow brings more painful memories to my mind. I did not grow up with it, so I enjoyed the childhood snow fun only through my children, but now they are grown. It’s very, very cold outside, cold and drafty in the house too.

Wrapped in layers of blankets, holding a warm cup of tea, my mind wanders. The sun, the sand, the warmth, the gentle sea lapping it’s frothy tongue across the beach. Salt fills my nostrils and cleanses my soul. The palm branch waves, a coconut drops to the ground, and I lay down. Sand molds to my body, wrapping me in it’s warmth. I need no blanket as the sun has me covered.

Memories of love and laughter, music and dancing, snorkeling and diving, sailing and so much more. The world was my ocean, the island my home.