Beauty on the Beach

We drove nearly 150 miles Thursday afternoon, from Lake Mary to Fort De Soto, an island south of St. Petersburg. We arrived just after 7pm, while the sun was still up. The remote beach, called North Beach, was not visible from where we parked.

We walked through some scattered patches of palm trees and pines before we could see its white sands. Turns out that North Beach was recently rated one of the whitest sand beaches in the country.

The Gulf of Mexico was beautiful and tranquil and the water was very warm. The sky was without a single cloud and deep blue, since the humidity was low. The seagulls screamed sporadically over the water.

We put down our blanket and took off our sandals. The sand felt and looked like white flour.

Jennifer fought back tears when I kneeled in the water an hour later and asked her to marry me. She was the picture of beauty. She had a gorgeous white sundress and was almost constantly smiling.

I was pinching myself all night. Though we had already talked in the past about marriage and a future together, when she actually said "yes," I thought I would lose it.

Dinner was at The Hurricane restaurant in Pass-A-Grille, Fla. After a slight mixup, the dining facility was opened up to us, and a complimentary round of champagne was brought over to Jennifer and I.

We took a quick stroll down by The Pier in St. Petersburg and had some pics done in one of those instant photo booths at the pier before heading home.

The most amazing and unforgettable evening of my life. We will never be the same!

In grace
Steven