BC Living
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The Sunshine Coast is named for bright days, but the nights here bring a living kind of light
I wonder if the six strangers in this Sprinter van can tell I got engaged three days ago.
My parents and sister know, as does my partner—who, of course, engineered the whole thing. But the proposal (and acceptance) happened right before I was scheduled to hop in this van and board a ferry to the Sunshine Coast. So, I had a choice: either copy-and-paste a mass text to my friends and family—expedient, if impersonal and anticlimactic—or wait until I return to deliver the news in person and indulge in all the screams, gasps and happy tears.
I’m absentmindedly resting my paddle in the water when I first notice it. It looks like little white sparks are dancing off the blade. I plunge my whole hand in and swirl it around: sure enough, tiny flecks of light appear and disappear with my movement. I whip out the magic wand—a.k.a., the stick—and drag it through the water. The flickering lights trail softly behind.As a person who grew up in B.C., I often feel like I’ve been sadly desensitized to the beauty of West Coast nature. But this is one of the most awesome things I’ve ever seen. The bioluminescence isn’t bright or spectacular, like fireworks; it’s subtle and enchanting in a way that requires you to stop what you are doing and simply stare.
I’m in no rush to go home, but now I have two life-altering experiences to share with my family and friends once I get there.