That beach trip was not just a beach trip to me.
It was proof I hadn’t lost sight of her.
For a while, the day gave me exactly what I wanted for her.
So I packed towels, snacks, wipes, sunscreen, water, and two extra onesies because I no longer trusted one to be enough.
For a while, the day gave me exactly what I wanted for her. Sophie dug a moat with both hands and narrated every choice like she was hosting her own show. Oliver slept in the shade.
Then Oliver woke up hungry.
Sophie sat beside me, pressing shells into the walls of her castle.
I sat under the umbrella, settled him in my arms, and covered us with the muslin blanket. It hid everything except the top of his tiny head. You could not see my body. You could barely tell what I was doing.
Sophie sat beside me, pressing shells into the walls of her castle.
Everything felt quiet.
Then I heard someone scoff.
“Unbelievable.”
I looked up and saw a woman several yards away with her phone pointed straight at me.
I adjusted the blanket around Oliver and kept my voice low.
Recording.
She walked closer brazenly.
“So this is acceptable now? It is disgusting!” she said, loud enough for nearby families to hear. “People just breastfeed wherever they feel like it?”
I adjusted the blanket around Oliver and kept my voice low.
“I am covered,” I said. “I am just feeding my baby.”
“Oh, please. There are children and men here.”
She laughed.
“Oh, please. There are children and men here. If you need to do that, at least have the decency to use a restroom.”
She did not stop there.
Instead, she came closer.
Close enough to film.
She tilted the phone, trying to catch a better angle beneath the edge of the umbrella. I turned my shoulder and pulled the blanket higher over Oliver’s head.
Then she swung the phone slightly.
“Please stop recording me,” I said.
