Friends and family reading this blog know Newport, RI is my favorite place on Earth. New readers: welcome to my obsession! Since discovering Newport in my early college years I have fallen in love with the island. The history, architecture, waterfronts, views, people, food, and traditions bring me back year after year.
One place in Newport is particularly special for me. It is a bench on the far corner of Brenton Park on Ocean Drive that I now simply refer to as “My Bench”. For the past twenty years it has been a place I go to recalibrate my soul. A light meal, journal, and blanket help me sit for hours working out whatever is stirring inside. From big creative ideas to tough life decisions My Bench acts like a portal to my true North.
I was feeling melancholy from the lack of cold weather here in Florida as we entered into the holiday season so I cashed in some SkyMiles for a quick trip to Rhode Island as a Christmas gift to myself.
Mornings started with an invigorating run/walk along the Newport Harbor. After a tour of the historic Redwood Library and Athenaeum ( the oldest lending library in America still in circulation) I plopped down in an antique, green leather chair and cracked open Middlemarch. Meals were treats that would regularly have been saved for special occasions. My Bench kept familiar company for two hours in the cold and was as comforting as an old friend.
The day before I was to leave I went to Midtown Oyster Bar on the hunt for the best oysters in town. Little did I know that my decision to bypass the formal front bar in lieu of the smaller seafood bar in the back would be such a fortuitous event!
Brian, seafood chef extraordinaire, served up the freshest fresh seafood and lovely wine for a lunch to dream about. The dining experience alone was enough to call my Mom and share but then he did something that I can only interpret as a divine act. Having chatted though lunch sharing our passions for seafood Brian surprised me by calling in a favor with his friend, Jules Opton-Himmel, owner of Walrus and Carpenter Oysters. Before I could blink Brian had set up a visit for me to their oyster farm for the next morning’s harvest! Needless to say the experience was epic in my books and my gratitude is endless.
Final Thoughts
At times in life I’ve felt guilty for spending money on myself to reboot. The college, retirement, and savings accounts would appreciate the padding and there is always something someone needs. But when I listen to my spirit and follow it’s lead it often becomes a cathartic lesson. This trip to Newport reinforced that solo mini trips are essential to my well being. I’m no longer going to feel guilty about it, rather I feel fortunate to have a wellness mechanism I can turn to that is so effective. Stepping away helps remind me of what I love and value and gives me the energy to lean in to life a little harder. Thank you, Bench. Until next time.
See The Walrus and Carpenter Oyster Harvest Experience
