My family moved to Folly Beach when I was just four years old. We only lived there for a little over a year, but it was totally worth it. It was a great place to find adventure for my brothers and me.
“As soon as I saw you I knew an adventure was going to happen.”
- Winnie the Pooh
One day during our time at Folly Beach, we were enjoying the freedom of life on the ocean as kids; my brothers decided they wanted some candy. There was a pier that was somewhat of a hike to the north. A small general store there had candy. This time I got to go with them. I bought a fireball – a favorite of mine ever since that day. It cost a penny.
At the age of four, it was my very first purchase. On the way home, we found a herring seagull with an injured wing. We took it and brought it home. Our parents let us keep it to try and nurse it back to health. We made a cage for it in the backyard. My brother, Pete, and I would catch a variety of small fish for it in the tidal pools at the beach. I don’t remember what we named it, but I don’t think it cared what we called it as long as we brought some fish for it. Our dog, Scotch, a beautiful, happy, and friendly Bernese Mountain dog, showed great interest in our seagull. The cage was built off the ground, and Scotch would lie under it during the day. I’m sure he was just protecting it. After some time, our seagull seemed to have healed. We had a little ceremony on the beach and let it go. It didn’t fly away but ran to join the other gulls on the beach.
One brisk spring morning, my mother called us all to go down to the beach. There was a strong wind blowing, the waves were thundering on the shore, and there was a mist in the air. A little further out from the waves was a sight to behold.
There was an endless stream of dolphins leaping through the air. They were all headed north. There literally must have been thousands. We watched in utter amazement for what seemed like an hour, and they were still going. What an absolutely breathtaking, beautiful, and awe-inspiring sight! Something I shall never forget.
Folly Beach was like that!