Isle of Palms (Continued)
I can tell you right now that I was never indulged, coddled or overly nurtured. But that was probably because my daddy's family had to fight for their very survival. Things were tough in the early days for them and for me too. For the longest time it seemed like my life would be an endless exercise of pushing big rocks up a hill. Take money. My daddy was the one who taught me the value of a dollar. Okay, he's a massive tightwad but he can't help it. Anyway, I learned that saving money and perseverance could get you something you wanted if you wanted it badly enough. And the only thing I ever really wanted was to get back to the Isle of Palms and live my life.
That took longer than it should have, to say the very least. But you see, nothing in my life ever happened quite the same way it did for the other people I knew. Every thing happened in wild extremes, which made for a whole lot of hullabaloo and lessons in life. Frankly, I could do without more learning experiences for a while. (Lord, I hope You heard that.) The most important thing I learned is that to be truly happy, you've got to pay attention to that stupid little inner voice we all have. It knows what you need and will drive you shit crazy until you listen to it. Guaranteed. My New Age clients - and I know them on sight because they wear crystals to which they have attached human names - call it connecting with the universe. Like my daughter says, whatever. I'll just stick with my own name for it, thanks. Now that inner voice thing sounds simple but you wouldn't believe how many people I know who are stuck in the rut they dug for themselves. And the good Lord didn't mean for so many people to be so unbelievably dissatisfied with their lives. I'm pretty sure about that.
Think about it. If you spend ten years thinking you wish you could go to China, then there's a good chance the experience would give your soul something it really needs. I'm not talking about people who say, damn, I wish I could run away to China this minute. Running away never solved a daggum thing. In fact, real happiness is hidden in facing yourself, asking yourself what it is you really want out of this life and then being honest about it. By the way, you couldn't pay me money to go to China.
Anyway, I'm lucky because I always knew what I wanted. It just took one helluva long time to get it, that's all. For me to be contentment and happy, I had to be on this particular island. I mean, I couldn't breathe right anyplace else. I'm serious. I've asked other people who live here what they think about that and they actually agree with me. They don't feel like they belong anyplace else either. And, my whole spirit is stronger here.
Naturally, I have a little theory about why that's so. Islanders are their own species. We have to live near the ocean to stay in touch with our souls. Everything is amplified. The breeze is sweeter, the air is thicker, the sun is relentless and the nights are more mysterious. God's fingerprints are all over it and, before y'all go get your knickers in a knot, I know that you should go to church but I also believe you can talk to God anywhere. Especially on the Isle of Palms.
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