Looking for Mermaids
One day, in the “before times” after meeting with my therapist, I went over to Alhambra Hall*. In those days — when we could go around barefaced and breath all over the place without fear of dying — I loved going to Alhambra or Sullivans Island to ground myself after therapy and let all the stuff that got stirred up to settle out, settle down, and integrate. Kind of like relaxation pose in yoga.
My family lived in the Old Village when I was little, and our backyard was on the other side of Alhambra’s playground. Often enough, when sent to my room for being naughty or to take a nap (age 5), I’d slip out of the house and was over that chain link fence in a flash. Running, jumping, climbing, swinging, but never not ever going across the street to get closer to the water. Nope, not ever. Hey, I was a rule-breaker and a free spirit, but I had my limits.
So on this particular day, after looking out at the marsh, watching the egrets fish and the shrimpers coming back in, my mind went blank and I was just there. Grateful to have grown up in such a beautiful, magical place and to have made my way back here after decades of being elsewhere.
They came up behind me so quietly, I almost jumped when I heard the mom say, “It’s okay, honey, maybe we’ll see them next time.” I turned and saw them — a young mom with two little girls, about 4 and 2 years old. Blonde hair shining in the bright April sun, the four-year-old’s face was as gloomy as Eeyore’s ever was. I smiled at them and the mom said, “We were looking for mermaids today. We’re sad because we haven’t seen any.”
Now, really, how many of us have been there? I mean, I know I have looked for mermaids every time I’m over there or at the beach. And sometimes I know I’ve seen one, but mostly, I stand there hoping and hoping to get a glimpse of one. Even just her tail would be fabulous. Just a little ripple on the water sets my heart racing. “This is it! There she is!”
So I told the little girl what I know is true.
“See out there where the water’s glittering? See that? Way way way out there?’ A nod. “That’s where the mermaids are hanging out. They are laughing and singing way way way out there in their garden. We can’t hear them because they are under the water and sometimes our human ears have a hard time hearing so far away. But, even if we don’t hear them or don’t see them, when you see the water all shiny and glittering like that, that’s when you know the mermaids are out there. So it’s sorta like they’re saying hi to us.”
Yeah, well, she wasn’t all that convinced, and all I got was 4-year-old gloom and attitude, but hey, I didn’t blame her one bit. I mean, really, life can be like that, right? You want what you want when you want it, and ain’t nothin' or nobody gonna tell you different. I get it.
But maybe just look for the sparkle around you. Find the beautiful, magical little bits in every day. And maybe you’ll find a mermaid someday.
* Overlooking Charleston Harbor, Alhambra Hall is a beloved landmark in the "Old Village" of Mt. Pleasant, SC.
More can be found here: mountpleasanthistorical.org
