In the photo above, Sven and Stephanie Stiavetti head onto Duck Harbor Beach. (Every time I walk the access path, I'm reminded of the National Seashore's plan to poison crows, because the crows in question lived near this beach.) The wind was ferocious over the weekend, when I took the photo, and yet it felt like spring was on the way after the few mild days earlier in the week. Walking onto Duck Harbor Beach always feels like a beginning to me. You never know what awaits you on the other side of the small dune. Will the tide be high, or will the tide be low? Incoming, or outgoing? Will the wind make walking the beach impossible? Will there be sand everywhere, or thousands of stones, all different shapes and colors? Will I meet other beachcombers? Will the experience of walking Duck Harbor be memorable, or so-so?After spending almost two months of 2011 in Boston, I feel like a new beginning is ahead for my writing. I sure hope that impression is correct. Meanwhile, I can report that my innkeeping life will be even crazier this year because not one, but two year-round B&Bs have closed: Stone Lion Inn and Appletree Guesthouse.
Are you at the beginning of something? Do the last months of winter inspire this type of optimism in you?
