British Poet John Masefield wrote his famous poem ‘Sea Fever’ in 1902 which so beautifully expresses our fascination with the sea. The second verse sums it up well:
“I must down to the sea again, for the call of the running ride
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied”
We love walking on beaches, dabbling our toes in the water. We love plunging into the waves, from toddler to pensioner, luxuriating in the water, feeling refreshed and revitalised, by the coolness, the bubbles, the sheer pleasure of swimming in a beautiful sea.
For those who love the rivers and the thrill of the white water rush, there is nothing like the excitement of the rapids as the current drags you past jungles and fields.
This is what we mean by coastal living, the coasts are the borders of our lands and the borders of our lives, where we heavy land–based creatures, suddenly feel freed from gravity, freed from worry, freed from our dependence on feet and legs, to float and frolic in the water.
For coastal living, the island is the answer, and Bali’s beaches make your holiday come alive – from sea to shining sea as Katherine Lee Bates said in 1893. Nothing changes, does it?
The only thing that has changed is our appalling habit of letting our garbage escape into those very rivers and streams we love so much, that then empty into the pristine ocean and ruin the magical experience.
Let us all work together to keep our rivers and oceans clean so that our seas remain ‘shining’.
