A Relaxing Wonderland

So many of my best childhood memories are centered on the shores of Dubai. Surrounded by all my favorite people, there was never a dull moment at the beach. Looking back, it seems like we spent every waking moment on the beach and in the water. We also played games inside the beach house, or just hung out and talked while sitting on the porch all night, looking out at a beautiful beach sunrise. When I was younger, no older than maybe six years old, I loved the waves. My cousins were too scared to go near the big ones, preferring to stay near the shore. But I was the daredevil; I looked down upon the wimpy waves, wanting only the big ones that were found in deeper water. Once, a big storm hit our beach and all the strong men went out with their surfboards trying to conquer the ten foot waves.

I wanted so much to join them at battle in the sea. However, my mother would not let me go in to the water. Instead, my cousins and I stayed on the porch watching, amazed at how the calm and peaceful ocean of the daytime could turn into such a monster at night. But the next morning, the sound of the calm waves crashing on the sandy shore greeted me as I first opened my eyes to the new day in paradise. The peaceful water I knew and loved had returned, waiting for me to go back in.

I am sitting on the beach watching a beautiful sunrise. The ocean water washes over my toes as I work them into the sand. This would be a paradise to me. My place of relaxation is the beach, especially the peaceful quiet morning beach. It...