The weekend started on Friday morning when Alison, Brad and I left for the family weekend destination, Puerto Penasco, Mexico. Rocky Point. Cholla Bay. Our little slice of paradise. It’s an easy drive, one that we enjoy and despite everyone’s concern and warnings….an uneventful drive. Checked in to the neighborhood hotel Al & I used to stay in, Rosa del Desierto. Its bare bones but its safe, the A/C works well and a large room with two king beds was only $35. Left right away and headed to the beach to find Alison’s former coworker Alissa and her family. Found them in the RV park on the beach that they frequent and spent the next several hours drinking and BSing the night away. Checked out of the hotel the next morning and hit a favorite local establishment for breakfast. Anita y Jesus – a super clean, super friendly place for a good meal. The best part about the place is Oscar. The owner’s brother. He remembers us year after year and we truly look forward to giving our business to this local establishment just to see Oscar and his beautiful, welcoming personality.
From there we drove around a bit and killed some time by checking out some of our favorite haunts before heading over to Las Palmas over on Sandy Beach. Before long Marshall & Ali and Les, Trevor & Isla showed up and we hung out at the resort pool until we were able to check in to the beach house. Finally the house was ready and so were we. The house was just as we remembered it from when Les & Trevor were married there two years ago. Absolutely gorgeous. So we spent the rest of Saturday and all day Sunday on the beach, swimming in the water of the Sea of Cortez, eating, drinking, playing late night “drunken” Pictionary and completely enjoying one another. We ended Sunday afternoon by sitting out on the patio overlooking the beach and watched the most amazing sunset only to be amazed at the sight of a red crescent moon. We watched as that red moon slipped below the horizon in just a matter of minutes. It was a sight I won’t soon forget.
I woke up early this morning, made coffee and went out on the patio to enjoy the early morning and wish Al a happy birthday. Today would have been his 62nd birthday and it also the 22nd anniversary of his mother’s death. I know somehow, somewhere their spirits are together and keeping us all safe. Before long the house was bustling with activity and we soon packed up and checked out to head out to Cholla Bay. We all made our way to Al’s favorite spot, the spot we spent many summer afternoons enjoying the weather, water and Mexican hospitality. Just a little spot on the beach in front of an old abandoned, little shack of a house. We placed a framed picture of Al, a biodegradable pretty container of ashes and a Mexican beer in the sand where Al placed his canopy and camp chair for a number of years and then Les dug a little hole in the sand in Al’s spot and poured some of his ashes from the container in to the hole and covered it back up with sand.
Then we all walked out in to the bay as the tide was coming back in and when we were in water above our knees we stopped and wished Al a happy birthday, told him we missed and loved him and then sent his ashes off to mix in the water of Cholla Bay. We all shared that last Mexican beer and “poured one out” for Al. It was pretty emotional, sad and mournful yet beautiful too. And leave it to my husband on this one. The biodegradeable “peaceful pillow” that contained some of his ashes and was supposed to become heavy as the water soaked through the container kept floating back to ME. I’d pick it up and walk several paces out and place it in the water to give it a little shove out in the deeper water but it kept floating and making its way back to me. Was that Al playing games with us? I think so. Al was one to tease and slowly “turn the screw”. He sure had fun messing with us today! The “pillow” became heavy and water logged but wouldn’t sink. We finally opened it up a bit and helped release his ashes from the dissolvable bag within the pillow and put a giant clamshell under the slowly dissolving ribbon tying it closed and the pillow slowly sunk to the bottom of the bay. From there we walked to JJs and had a drink in Al’s name.
Then it was time to hit the road and come back to reality in Tucson.
Happy Birthday Al. You’ll always be a part of your favorite paradise now and we are well on our way to honoring your wishes on how to dispose of your ashes. There are a couple more special events on the way in the near future but we definitely honored you today. You’d be so proud of your children and the wonderful people they’ve become. They honor you every day in the way they live their lives. Not only will you live on in your own little slice of paradise but you will live on in the hearts of your children, family, friends and me. You were taken from us much too soon but I feel your presence every single day. Thank you for the wonderful life you’ve given me. I love you.
No comments:
Post a Comment