The teenage daughter of a friend of mine once commented on how some of her peers are less focused on the meatier issues in life than they are on the definition of self through clothes, boys, and cosmetics – the sparkly things. Like a puppy chasing a butterfly they become easily distracted by these sparkly things.

As a self professed queen of all things shiny, glittering, and mirrored, I wasn’t sure if her comments extended to a middle aged woman as well.  But as I walk the beach every evening, my eyes are drawn to not only the obvious delights of sand and surf, but to the bits of colored plastic partially submerged in the sand. In the midst of the neutral landscape that is the beach, a fragment of robin’s egg blue or bubble gum pink will always capture my attention.

These remnants of consumer goods – soft drink bottles and beach toys – remind me of a more insidious and less appealing version of beach glass. They come in a variety of colors: lavender (my favorite), blue (the most common) pink (ooooh, pink!) and various shades of white and cream.

Last night a particularly colorful piece of plastic found its way into my pocket with the promise to set it aside, maybe even to start a collection to send to my friend’s daughter as a joke – sparkly things from the beach. As I walked I spotted another. Then another and another still until my pocket was full and I no longer had a long term project.

I was amazed at how quickly this seemingly innocuous trash accumulated not just in my pocket but on the beach as well. And while color is a significant part of my life as a writer and visual artist, I understand the importance of removing it as trash from the beach. As such I’m grateful for the organizations and communities of people who do just that.

On Saturday, August 16th, the Palm Beach chapter of Surfrider Foundation is having a beach cleanup. Christos Meimaroglou is coordinating the event with Florida Atlantic University. Locations are: Delray Beach (Atlantic Ave. and Linton), Boca Raton (Spanish River and Palmetto); and Deerfield Beach (Hillsboro). I plan to be there, my first event of this kind. For more info visit:

www.surfriderpbc.org
or
www.surfline.com/surf-report/delray-beach-florida_5376/localnews

As for the sparkly things I’ve collected for my friend’s daughter, I’ll send them to her with a little beach sand. Tonight I’ll look for a vessel that’ll compliment these colored bits of humanity, perhaps a shell or a sea grape leaf. Looks like I have a project after all.

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Copyright 2008 Diana Taylor

Photo credit: Diana Taylor