The other day I was asked if I wanted to go on a day trip to Brighton. This is normally the sort of offer that I shun as I like to stay well within my comfort zone, and this felt, well...outside of it. However, born out of the sudden frustration with monotony and lack of real human experiences, I instinctively agreed, and what a decision that turned out to be.
My friend and I spent the day at various bars, arcades and on rickety rides. Whether it was my body feeling the affects of the alcohol or the exposure to the sea air, I can honestly say this place felt good for the soul. So good in fact that when I looked at my watch and it said 6pm, I instinctively shouted, "great day, time has flown by!" A cliché yet absolutely true.
As the sun set and the signing emanating from the outdoor cinema showing Greece faded, my friend and I took to the beach to have one of those moments. Not a romantic one. He is a man, I am a man, and the last time I checked we were both straight. No this was a moment of peace. Brighton then allowed our creative juices to surface, and we decided to do some artwork using the beach as our canvass.
Initially we were going to use our feet, and scrape away at the sand creating words like 'mum' or 'we love Brighton.' And then it hit us. The reason why we had been so happy. Our country is proud. Proud for the first time in a long time. The Olympics has thrust us into the limelight, and as I looked out to sea, I knew our ship had come in. The success of the Olympics will not be measured on the medal count (something I constantly check!). Nor will it be measured on its capacity to inspire a generation, as is often said. London 2012 has inspired all generations. Even those stout British cynics cannot claim to be unaffected by the magic that has engulfed our glorious nation. I am so proud to be British, and that is why my friend and I decided to use the beach pebbles to create the Olympic rings.
Once the first circle, representing the first continent took shape, we began to attract attention. A young girl called Anna, from Hungary approached us and asked us what we were doing. My friend Rob, who had now appointed himself as 'artistic director' took it upon himself to inform the young lady. My gut feeling is she already knew, yet acted surprised and excited and asked if she could help. Of course she could. Next a young couple approached us. Richard and Joanne. They work together in marketing and like us, came down from London for the day. At this point the second circle was taking shape, and Rob was beginning to let the power of new recruits go to his head.
Suffice is to say we ended up being a party of 9 people. All feeling the Olympic bug. We even had an American assist us, a real scalp for me, as no Olympics party is complete without the Americans! When it was done and we parted ways, Rob and I decided to stay. We watched passers by admire and capture our creation with their cameras. More importantly we saw people smile. For once in my life, I felt like we had really achieved something. Something spiritual perhaps. Granted there are Olympics parties being held all around the world, yet right here on Brighton beach, I couldn't help but feel we were the centre of the world.