Our Daily Ocean: Day 171

Every Christmas, my family and I go to Wrightsville Beach.  It's been a tradition for us since we moved to Wilmington... ask me what I want for Christmas and my response would be "To go to the beach."  I guess, growing up in the Midwest, there's just something special about being at the beach on Christmas and reminding myself that this is not a vacation.  I don't have to hop on a plane and leave....  THIS is life.

...and I've missed being here.  I spent the end of November and the first half of December traveling.  For a short part of my trip, I visited my good friend Sara Bayles in Santa Monica.  I was there to share in celebrating Sara's 365th beach clean up (and lots of other good fun that friends have when they don't see each other but once a year!)  Now that Sara has completed her goal, she's taking her passion and inspiration off the sand and on the road for her speaking tour.  For more information on how to have Sara come to your school or business, visit:

www.dailyocean.org   

 Since 2010, it has been a tradition for me to do a Christmas day beach clean up.  It's my gift to the beach and ocean.  I get so much from just being there that in the midst of being busy and not having time... Christmas Day is a day that I make time.  My 33rd beach clean up was on Christmas 2010 and I did my 111th beach clean up Christmas 2011.... and now my 171st.  Which I'm happy to share that this has been my smallest Christmas Day beach clean up! 

It's not how much we give, but how much LOVE we put into giving. 

~Mother Teresa

20 minutes on December 25, 2012 at Access 16

Litter by weight: 7.5 oz

Cigarette butts: 275

Total amount of cigarette butts removed from Wrightsville Beach, NC in 171 days:

53,455