Nine Sand Dollars

Today was Organic Market day and it was slow. Very few people came in and towards the end most of the produce remained homeless. Holly says most people have left for the rainy season. I find that strange because it is not supposed to be the rainy season till the end of this month, beginning of May. She added that they also leave before Semana Santa. I’ve never lived in such a place where people live part of the year and then fly off somewhere else for the rest of the year. Does that make me a local because I stay or am I really in for something with all this talk of “rain?” I guess I’ll find out come May.

It did sneeze today with just a sheet of mist, enough to darken the asphalt but nothing more. These “test runs” are fun and I’ll have to remember how I enjoyed them when it starts raining every day. I can’t even imagine what that will be like having done so much during this “dry” season. It will be like living in two different places.

I took another water taxi home, this time I rode with “Bictor” and his son. I simply walked up to him standing on the shore and said “Nessicito bote por otra lado.” He replied “Mucho gusto” and we headed off to the only remaining boat. He told me it’s name and remarked “Isn’t it beautiful?” I told him it was. There were benches in this boat, no chairs and the ride over was mostly in silence.

Along the 2.5 mile walk back I found one sand dollar, perfectly intact, and then another. On a good day I can only find one, and even then it is normally half cracked or crumbles in my hand. I told myself if I found a third I’d take it home with me thinking surly I would not be so blessed for that to happen. Soon after I found a third and laughed. God was playing with me and I was enjoying the game. Scooping it up I held it in my hand and studied it, wondering what I would do with it. Somehow I feel that if I take anything from the beach it should be for a useful purpose. So I placed the sand dollar back and walked on. I could just imagine another tourist finding it, the smile on their face as they held it up and calling to their family, they would proudly show off their discovery. Pocketing it and packing it safely between socks and underwear for the flight home, they would place it in a small treasure box and years later pull it out. The simple token from their time in Costa Rica would bring back wonderful memories as they held it and they would smile once again. Can I deny someone that joy just because I want it?

As I continued to walk, lost in thought I spotted another and another, till I had counted nine total. I was rich. I’d never seen so many and all in one short walk home. Each sand dollar was perfect except for the last which was double the size of any of the rest and had a small chip on the side. Still it weighed heavy in my hand and I snapped a picture of it. I had told myself I had wanted to find a sand dollar one day, but I never imagined finding nine. What a wonderful experience.

There are sea snails here that push along the sand burrowing in deeply as they go. I’ve watched them go and done my best to avoid stepping on them as I walk. They are everywhere, moving slowly along the edges of the waves. How does one beach have so much life, and yet others are dead? You’d never see sea turtles, snails, crabs, or hermit crabs at the beaches back home. Have we scared away all the wildlife or destroyed it? Have the high rises and restaurants replaced the sand crawlers and pelicans? And the seagulls, they don’t live here. Now that I think of it I have not seen any seagulls at all. I think I would gladly trade the seagull infested, bone bleached shores of California for these beaches. Such life overshadows the needs for shopping, parking and snack bars.