Best Babysitter

This weekend, we enjoyed the last of the best babysitter there ever was. The pristine, sandy white beaches of Perdido Key will be lost forever as the oil spill inches ever closer. Where else can you take your kids for hours of uninterrupted frolicking in the soft sands between your toes and warm waters that coax and caress the skin?

For nearly four hours, the kids got to play around the beach, digging their little holes with their mighty pink shovels and yellow pails, and squealed with delight with each crashing wave. Sure, the tide was a little strong as the yellow flag indicated, but the sun was bright, warm and absolutely inviting. A cold little drink and the smell of sunscreen rounded out the luxury of pure nothingness.

What made the reality of the oil just miles offshore was the constant flow of beach patrol and helicopters conducting their surveillance above. The poor airplane that was advertising some fun concoction was literally lost in the sky...I don't even remember what the promo was about.

As a child growing up in Pensacola and into my college life, I had the opportunity to play in the Gulf and sink my feet in all parts of the beaches - from Navarre all the way to our beloved Perdido Key. After the hurricane seasons including Opal, Erin, Ivan and others, Navarre and Pensacola Beach were never the same. Navarre Beach eventually was renamed Opal Beach after it re-opened years after the damage struck its shores. Traces of Hurricane Ivan actually still litter the quiet town of Pensacola, including blue tarps and abandoned storefronts. It will be decades more I'm sure, before any signs of recovery will take place after this BP mess.

I'm certainly glad the kids were able to play, if even for a little while, on one of nature's best treasures. The beach wasn't nearly as crowded as Pensacola Beach was - at least based on the media coverage and what I heard - and I was grateful for the few passers-by and the small pockets of family and friends enjoying their time in the sun.

We bid a fond farewell to our beach and said good-bye to a babysitter that was so thankful to have us share in its glorious beauty. We will miss you and pray that one day, when the kids are all grown up, we can enjoy the endless flow of blue-green waters and pearly sand in all of our crevices.