A friend and I were beachcombing recently on a quiet stretch of rocky coastline. A man and his son approached, and we exchanged pleasantries. The boy asked what we were doing. “Searching for treasures,” I replied, and held out my hand to show him the pieces of sea glass I had found.
The father reached into his pocket and gave me an excellent piece of sea glass. It was clear, but it was about two inches across and had been part of a bottle top. A piece of rim still remained. I thanked him profusely, and said, “You’ve made my day!”
I’ve always liked searching beaches to see what I could find. Usually it was shells, but then a friend of my mother’s, who lived in the quaint Rhode Island town of Little Compton, introduced us to sea glass. There was a good spot for scouting glass in that town, in the days when glass bottles were widely used and there were no recycling laws. I have been collecting it ever since.
Now, sea glass is becoming rarer. In fact, I’d hardly found any on this particular beach, though I’d visited it many times. On this day, however, I found four small pieces. One was an aqua blue. I don’t have many of that shade. Most sea glass is the brown of beer bottles or clear, which could be anything. Later, I found a violet piece. It was a banner day.
Sea glass is thick and translucent, the result of being buffeted by sand and tide. Shipwrecks were once a common event along the Maine coast, and I am intrigued to imagine that some of the glass I find may come from the 19th century, or even earlier. I try not to think of the tragedy of ships going down, their contents, including glass vessels, lost to the sea.
Rock collecting is another one of my hobbies. The friend with whom I was beach combing enjoys looking for “heart rocks.” I had never heard of this concept until she told me about it. It turns out that many rocks are shaped in the form of a heart. Few are exact, as if they’d been molded, but the rough ones are just fine. Heart rocks are reasonably easy to find; there are a lot more of them out there than specimens sea glass. Plus, they tend to be bigger, and so easier to spot.
I also like rocks that resemble other things. Last week I found one that looked like a baby’s foot. I also saw a smooth, round rock about the size and shape of a human skull. Seaweed was attached to it, like hair. I didn’t pick it up, but I did post a picture of it on Facebook, claiming it was a shot of ancient remains. My friends were amused.
One year, I seemed to find many rocks that looked like food. Layered ones in red and dark yellow resembled chunks of meat marbled with fat. Not appealing, I know, but fascinating all the same. There were egg-shaped rocks, and pie-shaped rocks and even one that looked like a sandwich.
Some rocks are useful. They make interesting paperweights. Some have deep dimples where water collects. These can provide drinking spots for butterflies and frogs in the garden.
Then there are the rocks I just pick up because they appeal to me. I like polka-dotted rocks, and stones that glitter. If a rock is an unusual color, like ochre, I want it.
Beachcombing often turns up other items as well. I don’t find many shells where I comb. I don’t know if I need to find new spots, or if that reflects a decline in the shellfish population. The most common shells that I find are mussels. When my husband Paul and I visited Newport, R.I., a number of years ago, we picked up several large white quahog shells. They were beauties.
Sometimes I find shellfish parts. While on vacation this month, I discovered an intact lobster claw. Where do periwinkles fit in? Their shells can be attractive, but you have to make sure there isn’t something living inside. There’s nothing like bringing them home, only to watch them walk off.
Driftwood is everywhere. Lately, I’ve been focusing on small pieces, though we have some large, almost intricate, examples that we use as garden ornaments.
Which brings us to the subject of what to do with what I collect. I have some jars of sea glass, but I would like to try to make something out of some of my pieces. My rocks usually end up around the garden, though there is a lineup of heart rocks on the railing of the front porch. Paul once made me a wind chime out of mussel shells that’s quite attractive.
Mostly, however, I like my seaside collections because they remind me of summer. Sea glass evokes the colors that result when the ocean meets the horizon. They are as smooth as a calm day at sea. Some of my treasures carry the scent of the sea, some the sound. In the dead of winter, that’s music to my ears.
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