The Jersey Shore

Ah. "The Jersey Shore". My response to these words have nothing to do with Snooky and reality TV beach life. They have nothing to do with tramp stamps or messy beach parties or baring all on MTV. These words are instant nostalgia for childhood, family, seafood, and falling asleep to the sound of the ocean. I'm nearly positive that my very first memory is at the Jersey Shore when my cousin (a toddler at the time... just to be clear) refused to wear any clothes as she ran down the beach. This memory is followed by a memory of hugs from my grandparents as we all snuggled in to take a three generational photo of the family. So what is a California girl who was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area doing feeling so nostalgic for the Jersey Shore? Well, there is quite a story there. Rephrase... there are quite a lot of stories there and the stories go back far beyond my lifetime. 

And rather than carry on by going down each and every memory lane or bore you with the details about how my great grandfather found his way to purchasing a house on the shore... I'll begin with my parents. Because really the story of this trip begins with them.

I remember when my brother, Sean, and I were kids we would beg our parents to tell us again and again the story of how they met. My dad had spent every summer of his childhood and young adult life on the Jersey Shore. My mom, a Florida native, had found her way to the Jersey Shore in her early twenties. These were the days of disco-ing and carefree adventure making. They both loved the life that the shore would bring in the summers and they first met while working at a family owned Italian restaurant where my mom was a server and my dad was a cook. As they would tell us this particular story they would light up with fond memories, belly-overed laughter, and impersonations of this guy or that girl. We couldn't help but hang onto every word.

This same joy lit up the memories we made on the shore as we grew up. Everyone seemed so incredibly happy and content at the shore. I loved falling asleep to the sound of the ocean, waking up to my dad fishing on the beach, how oddly tan my brother would get for his fair complexion, my mom's catch-up sessions with old friends over dinner, the Eagle's DVD being played on repeat each night, and evening walks through the sand. It was heavenly.

As with all stories, we hit a bit of a bump in our plot and during the recession had to sadly say goodbye to quite a lot, including our beach house and our summers on the Jersey Shore. And although it was very sad, I would be selfish and silly to not recognize how incredibly fortunate we were to have these memories in the first place. The stories we have there will forever be close to us and we can't help but look back on them with contentment, laughter, and pure love.

Something funny happens once you hit your twenties. You grow up. And you grow farther and farther away from your childhood and the past. You build a new life, new memories, new relationships, new beliefs, and new experiences. Being an adult is humbling and confusing and fun and weird and amazing and educational and un-educational and just a lot really. For a while I use to think that I had to go home less and less as I got caught up in work and responsibilities. But I have recently found that going home is not always physical, but often an experience that hits in those moments when you get to catch up with a childhood friend over dinner when they are in town for work, or when you get to hug your family for the first time after not seeing them for months, or you stumble upon a photo album when you are in the midst of another apartment move, or you find yourself around a dinner table sharing memories with the people you love.

Life happened and our family found ourselves not venturing back to the shore together for nearly ten years.

So I can say with a full heart and complete certainty that being able to spend time with my family on the shore this past week was truly special.

And the most wonderful part was watching my parents renew their vows in the exact spot that my dad first asked my mom out over thirty five years ago. That was pretty darn great. We wanted to give them something that captured that memory of the shore. So we went to this exact spot and bottled up the sand for them to take back to California.

It was wonderful being back. We have been through quite a bit since our last family trip there, but then again so has the shore. I guess you could say we've all grown up a bit. My takeaway is that it's really about the memories we've made together and I'm so excited to add this one to the pile of stories we can look back on.

Congratulations, Mom & Dad! Your love, friendship, sense-of-humor, and strength is continuously inspiring and I am so glad to have been there with you as you renewed your vows! Here's to another 35+ years!