not missing the boat

I have often written that circumstances should not determine whether we find joy in our lives. 

But I do not always write the truth.  On this trip, that little adage has turned out to have more holes than a hunk of Emmental.

My friends Roy and Nancy booked us into two different resorts for this trip.  One in Palm Beach; the other in Fort Lauderdale.  The goal was to get a beach view at both locations.  After all, this is a big birthday for Roy.

The first resort was the Marriott at Ocean Pointe.  There was far more point than ocean.  I am not certain why, but the units were built horizontal to the beach.  Leaving most of the units with a very nice asphalt view.  In our case, if you could balance on one foot in the living room, you could get a glimpse of the ocean through the palms.

The view was a bit disappointing.  Until we started talking about what we had.  Here we were in Florida.  With clear weather.  Swimming pools galore.  A well-appointed unit.  Just steps from an uncrowded beach.

The lack of a view from our air-conditioned living room was something to be missed.  But it certainly was not enough to throw a wrench into the fact that we three friends were together to share a good time in our lives.

On Saturday we moved south to Fort Lauderdale -- at the Marriott Beach Front Towers.  And we have exactly what we expected.  A great view of a popular beach.  And streets filled with people enjoying the last three-day holiday of the summer.

For us, it was even more special.  On Sunday we celebrated Roy's birthday -- as well as the birthday of his high school friend, PJ, who lives in the Miami area.

I doubt I will ever be a fan of Florida living.  But that is simply a circumstance.  Being able to share in these life milestones with friends is good enough with me.  Along with airplanes flying by with their cheesy advertisements, young people whizzing by on their waverunners, families gamboling in the surf with the occasional shark, and everyone just having a good time in a country that still knows how to pursue the vestige of happiness.

And I thought to myself, I do not know what circumstances may hold in store for me or my friends, and I have no idea where I will be in a month or two, but I feel as if I am sitting with family here on the balcony, and we are all finding our way home.  And it made me so joyful that I thought this is plenty of circumstances for me to live in now.