I still have sand in my ears

Have you ever been slapped by an ocean wave so hard that it spanked you backward, ground your elbows into the sand, then sent your feet flopping over your head? You finally jab your foot into the sand so you can stand yourself up only to feel the subtle undertow lure your knees back out into its next curling wave. Stinging salt water floods from your nostrils and mouth as you giggle, all the while trying to find those sunglasses somewhere in the churning deep and tug that swimsuit back to covering all the important parts. You spot your friends and family, equally disheveled and finding their footing in the water, gearing up for that next big wave. You scream and laugh and secretly hope it happens again.

Later, while drying off on your towel in the sun with a bag of Chex Mix in your hand, you watch your child with bewilderment, wondering just how long that sand will entertain him. But it does, for most of the day, and at the end of all the snacking, lounging and laughing that accompany a trip to the beach, you feel a little sunburned - and so satisfied.