How to pose on a beach and other life lessons from a blue heron and a beautiful young woman

A nice man asked me if I wanted him take my picture as I stood on the beach shooting the sunset.

“Sure!” I answered and handed him my phone.

He snapped a couple of shots and I thanked him as he walked away.

The pictures made me laugh because, in all these years of loving the beach, I’ve never really learned how to pose on it.

My niece Olivia has that down. She lives with unfettered joy and her beach photos make me smile every time.

I asked her if I could share her most recent one because I hope it makes you smile too.

I’d like to think we could all roll into spring with Olivia’s confidence and joy.

I saw a blue heron posing on the beach this weekend too, and I admired his dignity and sense of purpose. He waited calmly there on the water’s edge and owned his turf.

Humans walked around him and he gave them a magnanimous nod, lifting his chin when they raised their cameras toward him.

I’d like to think we could all make our way through this old world with a quiet dignity and healthy sense of purpose.

As for my photo, I think the lesson is that you don’t have to nail your pose to smile when you see your picture, because it reminds you of how much fun you had splashing around in the glorious ocean behind you, and how much peace you found in that beautiful sunset.

I hope we can all appreciate the humor in our fallibility and the endless beauty of a sunset.