With the seas swelling we decided to stay in Atlantic Highlands one more night. We woke late (630 for us) and relaxed with coffees. John went to shore while we worked and then Carrie, John, and I made the very long dinghy journey to the Sandy Hook beaches. The tide was so low we had to lift the motor far out of the water and people were just standing in the ocean next to their own boats!
It was so hot by the time we got to the beach I went right into the water and immediately got pinched by a crab right on my big toe. Although it might seem unfair, my cousin Johnny and I would know that I probably deserved it. We spent countless nights every summer tricking those poor little crabs into our nets at the Jersey Shore.
Every summer my mom’s family would gather the last week in July to visit at the Jersey shore. We had a set routine, a set grocery list, bags of library books from my Nana, bags of candy, and two decks of cards for our evening games of ‘May I’. This was a card game taught to us by our Nana that I still play on Tuesday nights with my family and friends.
‘May I’ is my favorite memory about New Jersey. Even with the boardwalk and its cool rides, the sandcastles on the beach, the donut shop we went to every morning, or my Nana’s famous candy drawer. Maybe it is because it was a well sought right of passage. You were not allowed to play unless you could shuffle two decks at a time. I would practice endlessly and to this day I am the best shuffler of all of my friends.
Or maybe that wasn’t it. Maybe it was spending time around the table with my mom’s family sharing snacks and cards and sometimes secrets. Laughing like crazy as our sugar levels rose high enough to make us delirious. Staying up late with the adults until that last hand that determined who would win it all.
As I sat on the beach guarding my toes from the vengeful crabs these memories filled my heart. I watched those families standing in the water by their boats making their own memories, their laughter floating on the wind. I am so grateful for those times with my Nana and the amazing family she embraced, nurtured, loved and taught a game that we can play with our own kids and someday their kids, too.
I have two favorite memories of your vacations at the Jersey Shore. 1) the giant gobstopper you would bring me back every year (I don’t think I ever got to the middle)
ReplyDelete2) When I returned from Maine after two long weeks in August and we would run into each other’s arms in the middle of the street because it felt like we hadn’t seen each other in years!
❤️Ellen
I remember that too and I love how dramatic it was. LOVE LOVE LOVE
DeleteI was just telling Anthony’s family about how chocolate covered taffy is my favorite and that the kids were never allowed to have any because it was for the adults. I remember asking every summer if I could join the game and the answer was always no. Until one summer I was finally old enough but of course couldn’t shuffle. I spent a whole year practicing to shuffle cards and now I am the best shuffler I know. I was able to enjoy some delicious taffy in ocean city, Maryland last week, but unfortunately it was not covered in chocolate.
ReplyDeletePoor you! We will play May I when I get there and eat chocolate taffy until we are delirious!
DeleteI feel nostalgic for memories that I did not even have. They are yours but I still love them
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