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The winding path

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This is the way to the beach. The dog beach, as we call it. It’s a lovely stretch of golden sand in Muskegon. The boardwalk winds its way down to the shore. There, you take a few steps off to the right and you can unleash your dog to scamper freely along the beach. It’s the perfect spot for our little family to convene. That way all four of us have a great time together. No leaving the pup at home. (The cats, alas, are unable to join us.)

We prefer to go in the late afternoon. We usually arrive between 5:00 and 6:00, when the noisiest families are packing up their stuff to leave and the sun is sinking slowly toward the horizon. We’re left with a sparsely populated shoreline, where couples walk hand in hand and dog people greet each other as the pooches bound all about.

Last night’s breeze brought along a steady series of small waves that created a nice little rhythm. It was a great night. What summer is all about. The hot, steamy days of the past few weeks abated and left us with truly pleasant tempartures. And the overcast skies were no bother. The clouds parted as the sun sank lower, giving the water a lovely sparkle. As we left, padding through the sand, breathing heavily with the exertion, then slapping our bare feet along the wooden planks, I turned to Scott and said, “See, Michigan is beautiful.” And it is.