Shelter Island

Having lived a mostly peripatetic life, I like the idea of being able to return to a place over and over again. In the last 10 years, I've made a point of going to Shelter Island every summer, if only for a couple of days. It's a gentle place, with calm clear beaches hugging verdant hills. Crescent Beach is one of my favorite places to swim, especially early in the morning, when the sun is just peeking over the hill. We just spent two glorious days there. I swam in the morning, my hands scooping up the silky water in a rhythmic pattern, my body dissolving into the sea. Above me, puffy white clouds drifted lazily in a crystal blue sky. The world melted away, leaving me with nothing but the sea, the trees on the hill, and the sky overhead.