Is this Heaven...Part 2.

It's amazing what people see when looking at what seems to be apparently the same scenes.

Case in point. I was recently on OIB at the community center overlooking a beautiful stretch of beach. It was still quite cool (lower 60's). I stayed on the walkways out of the sand while my wife took a walk on the beach. A few people were coming and going.

A young couple from Nevada with small children were making their way onto the beach, towing their chairs and coolers when one of the youngsters said to his Mom, "There are a lot of old people here." "Shhh, be nice" she said. I looked around and sure enough there were several couples walking and/or sitting on the beach that most people would have called "old".

One of the "older" couples came walking off the beach, looked in to maybe be in their late 60's or early 70's, I'm not very good at age anymore. She was helping him balance his way up the stairs. He looked over at me and said, "I guess the tourist are starting to come back." "Yes" I said, "seems like they are." "Before you know" he said as he stopped to rest a minute, "there won't be be room to walk for all the kids."

My wife and I have been coming to the OIB area for 30 years or so and dreamed for years of living here full time. About 10 years ago we bought a condo and started coming down a couple times a month. About 5 years ago we moved here permanently. I hear my friends talk about how crowded it's getting and how expensive things are, how rude some people are and how noisy it is on the beach and in restaurants, shops, etc.

I don't think they are seeing what I see or for that matter hear what I am hearing.

Let me tell you what I really see. When I watch my wife walking down the beach I not only see the mother of our children nor just the grandmother of our grandchildren. I see my beautiful bride as she is walking and admiring the ocean. The struggles we've been through, the achievements we've had only make her more beautiful. My heart still skips a beat when she tells me she loves me.

The couple walking up the stairs and resting for a moment to catch their breath, I'll bet they see each other totally different than we do. I imagine they have been through a lot together also.The "young" people from Nevada with the noisy kids. I seem them getting hooked on the beach too and starting to dream about retiring here also.

Welcome I say. Come on down. You will love it here. It's just a piece of heaven.

How does my beauty of a wife see me? I can't walk on the beach with her anymore. I can't chase her around anymore like I used to. I can't do a lot of the things I used to do but somehow I know she sees the man that loves her and not what everyone else sees when they see me.

Take a real good look at your surroundings. Maybe you see them so much it is hard to see what is there.

We don't live in the condo anymore. We have a house on a golf course in the Sunset Beach area living out our dream. No we are not rich in the way most people consider rich. We have been through our struggles, sometimes having more than we needed, sometimes less than we needed. We have made good decisions and we have made bad decisions.

Life is a rollercoaster ride. Slow climb up, fast ride down but exciting none the less.Wherever you might be in your ride, the next turn will be exciting. Don't let the little things get you down. After all we haven't seen what's around the next corner.

Look and see it differently this time. It just could be wonderful.

Happy Pappy

Is This Heaven?

Almost everyone I meet is from some area outside of coastal Brunswick County. Some came here originally on vacation when they were younger. Some came almost every year either with parents or as parents bringing children of their own to see the ocean, relax a little and play on the beach for a week. Some came to play golf and dreamed of retiring and buying a home at the beach. Some have homes in other areas of the state or nation and come here often to relax.

I spoke with a man at Hardee's recently. He was retired truckdriver from the North Carolina mountains. He was an avid golfer and even a "close to scratch" golfer on his home course back in the mountain region where he had played several times a week. He and his wife bought a home at one the local golf resort communities a few years back before retirement and once they retired they sold their mountain home, paid off the mortgage on their dream retirement home and moved here fulltime. Once an avid golfer he went on to say that past injuries didn't allow him to play on the golf course as he had once dreamed about but was still happy that he was here at the beach and living out his dream retirement.

Some of us came here to find jobs, some came to retire. Yes it is booming. Yes there is a lot of traffic. Yes there are a lot of people on the golf courses, beaches, restaurants, roads, grocery stores, shops and sometimes during the summer months its seems like you have to stand in line to get in line.

Oh, you say....what does all of this have to do with traffic problems and public input? The answer is........BE THANKFUL.

TO THE CITY PLANNER: Be Thankful because without all these people there would be no need for a city planner.

Sure, it would have been better if someone could have looked into their crystal ball and accurately predicted when and where everyone would live and work but there were some misses along the way.

People have a way of managing. Planned and crisis management are two types of management we see the most.

Planned: Lay it out on paper, build it, hope it sells.

Crisis: Boy we guessed wrong, it sold 10 times faster than we thought. Now let's go to the fix it mode.

RESIDENTS: BE THANKFUL that we have willing people in planning, crisis and fix-it mode in all of our area beach towns and cities. Some American cities are in reverse boom crisis. Their people are leaving businesses. Plants are closing, traffic is down, property values are declining, tax bases are disappearing and services are hard to come by.

In the movie "Field of Dreams", the question is asked, "Is this heaven?". Kevin Costner response was, "No, this is Iowa." His father went on to state, "Oh, I was sure this was heaven". Kevin Costner asked, "Is there a heaven?". John his father stated, "Oh yes, its the place where dreams come true." Kostner responds with, "Maybe this is heaven."

For most of us Brunswick County is Heaven on earth or at least where our dreams have come true. Let's all try to be a little more patient, courteous and forgiving on the roads and lines until the planning, roads and other structures can catch up.

Happy Pappy