As I was walking along Folly Beach last weekend, I spotted a woman walking along the water’s edge with two balloons in her hand. One was a Big yellow smiley face and the other was a Happy Birthday balloon. My attention was drawn to the smiley face flying against the water and the blue sky so I took a quick shot of it with my zoom lens. As I walked several yards behind her, I initially thought she had just come from perhaps a birthday breakfast and was carrying balloons from that celebration. I quickly realized that her body was moving slowly and I could feel her sadness penetrate the salty air. Tears began to fill my eyes as I watched her walk into the shallow water, look to the sky and release the balloons. I said a prayer with her and for her and for whomever she was sending that “Happy Birthday” message to. It wasn’t until a few days later when I downloaded photos from that beach walk and realized that you could see what was written on the Smiley balloon. “Happy 14th, Fly High Sweet Angel”. It is in moments like these that I know for sure- we are all connected.
