Last weekend we ventured for the first time this season to our local town beach. We are Town of Oyster Bay residents on Long Island and so ToBay is our beach choice when we feel the need to touch the ocean. And, we’re Long Islanders so that’s half the lure to being here.

We hadn’t been to ToBay since last summer. Usually it’s a pretty long walk from the parking lot down to the beach. Admittedly, I’m usually complaining along the way. First there is a long walk through a tunnel just to get to the edge of the beach – and then the long walk in the sand to our place to plant in the sand.

But this time, when we reached the edge of the beach something was different. We looked at each other and said out loud – what happened to the beach? Half of its depth was just gone. Gone. I literally had to hold on to climb down the sand hill to the water.

Clearly environmental changes are taking their toll on my community. It has me both sad and angry. There is talk about a petition to get the town to re-sand the beach. Hopefully, something will be done or by next year we will all be sitting in the concession stand.