From the mind of Paul Jones

At the moment that I am writing this, I am sitting on a front porch looking eastward at the waves of the Atlantic as they crash the beaches of Garden City, SC. Bodies are playing in the surf as families enjoy the last gasp of the summer season, and children try to forget that school is eminent. I am sitting alone on this porch, nursing a sunburn I obtained yesterday in my attempts to erase my beautiful Nashville farmer’s tan. The nursing of this sunburn is not so much to care for the pain, as much as it is a procedure involving gels and creams that reduce the strong possibility that any color I may have obtained will soon disappear in a disappointing flurry of peeling skin.

I have only recently regained an appreciation for the beach vacation. For many years, I disliked the beach– well, not the beach per se, but the “beach experience” that involves being half naked and exposed for long periods of time to the sun. I am not sure if my dislike began as a result of the many childhood sunburn miseries or because of the fact that, half naked, I look like the Pillsbury dough boy in swim trunks… perhaps a combination of the two. Maybe it began sometime about fourth grade, when I began to wear t-shirts swimming… partially because of sunburn prevention and partially to conceal my growing pasty white belly.

Regardless of how and why, I mostly resisted going to the beach until two years ago, when I returned to Phoenix in order to drive my VW bug to Nashville, and had a nearly religious experience. Early on my last morning in Phoenix, I got up and decided to jump into my fiend’s pool for an early morning swim. The water was cool and refreshing and the sun was just beginning to peak above the rooftops. I moved to the edge of the pool and pulled myself half way out of the water directly into the suns rays. For nearly twenty minutes, I rested there reclined as the sun rose and began to warm me. For the first time in my memory I enjoyed the combination of water and sun in a truly thankful way.

At that moment, my mood was even worshipful, as I appreciated God’s love for me in the warming rays. Now when I think of that moment, a verse from the Old Testament (Malachi 4:2) comes to mind. “… the sun of righteousness will arise, with healing in his wings.” In those few moments I experienced some healing, and afterward, I began to think much more enjoyably about the sun and surf; so, when I am tired and burned out, I often find myself having a longing for that special kind of healing.

For the last 3 months, I have been working on the television show Nashville Star, which, with its 12 hour work days, really beat me up. Add to that beating the fact that my girlfriend Kim and I were working opposite schedules that didn’t allow us to see each other very often, compounded even further by the fact that she was losing her apartment of 15 years and had to sell, chuck, move or give away a large volume of belongings, and (the worst part… for me) the need to actually move things from the 5th floor apartment during the hottest and most humid part of the summer, at the same time we are being needed for in the Nashville Star finale.

By the time Kim was moved and the show ended, we were both severely beat up physically and emotionally and in need of a vacation. Lucky for both of us, Kim’s family holds its annual beach reunion every year in August. This year, it landed perfectly at the end of Nashville Star. A month or so ago, I got the invitation to be included in the family event, an opportunity to meet Kim’s family was something I was ready for, especially if it meant a week-long vacation at the beach.

So, here I sit on day 3, a nice breeze is blowing, the sky is a bit hazy, but the weather is excellent. Humidity is low, the temperature is warm and the pool is cool. Between the beach, the pool, the seafood buffets and an enjoyable family dynamic, I am in hog heaven. The only bummer, it the intermittent Internet signal I can pirate from the condos next door. But ultimately, who cares about the Interwebs or the Olympics when you have the sun of righteousness arising with healing in his wings, just waiting with open arms to calm, warm and revive you.

What I hope follows this entry, is a series of blogs that offers a day-by-day summary of the healing.