Obituary: L. Morrill Burke, February 12, 2013, and what he did at Singing Sands, Long Island, ME

Some pictures of what my father built at Singing Sands Beach and also his property behind the beach.

This is the earliest known photograph of the cabin my father built at Singing Sands Beach, Shark Cove, Long Island, ME. The white door to the leftish of the image still remains. The cabin has been extensively changed over the years. The original "army" barracks windows my father put into the window openings years ago rotted and new windows have been installed. The area to the left of the white door was significantly expanded around 1986, and the wood cook stove I grew up with has been removed and replaced with a gas stove.

The beach, as it has always been, if without the flocks of the Piping Plover. I suspect that when the small red fox hit the island, they made it impossible for the Piping Plover to successfully breed in the dunes; the foxes, who often dig dens in the dunes, would have raided the ground nests.

Why a week 3/4rds off the grid is a great vacation

July and August at our summer cabin have been consistently rented for over 20 years. Due to climate change, we are now offering our place in June, which has had the best weather over all the months in the past three years. Clear blue skies; temperate weather; and freedom from boaters and visiting "tourists." Quiet and loveliness as you may have only imagined.



Our place is not for the soft-handed, nor the too-pampered. This is a place for those people who really want to feel life between their teeth. A week in this place will restore your soul. No, it is not a grand Nantucket house, with fancy shops nearby. It is not Martha's Vineyard. It is not even the fancy Maine "Blue Hill" community. It is far more special and unique. It is 11 private acres, with the largest white sand private beach in Maine, which we, the Burkes share with our community, and yet still retain a sense of privacy. But, there are no automatic hot showers. There are sun-showers. Or, you can heat up water for a private bath on the front porch, at night, under the stars, or, as far as we're concerned, right during the middle of the day. Strip down, get naked, pour hot water over yourself, and soak up the sun.

And for those who have ever wondered what it is really like to live closer to "off the grid", here is your chance, without losing a bit of sleep over things. Waking up in one of the most special places on the East Coast, and knowing one will be spending a good day, even if it is foggy and rainy.



My general experience is that during vacations, I can't really rest if I'm doing absolutely nothing, just having my needs catered to. What I really want is to be re-awakened, enlivened. Time when I can finally find out about the world I am otherwise missing, because I'm so busy working.  Sure, we want a rest, but we want a rest from those hours doing things just for money, which most of us have to do.

It is not just watching the sun rise, listening to the ocean, or taking a private dip (clothed or naked). It is not just sitting on a porch all day. Rather, it is rediscovering what it means to be alive. Not just exercising in a gym, our eyes glued to some tv screen.

Kayaking in a quiet harbor and seeing the wildlife, learning about it. It is having access to a decent home library, or washing  dishes while watching terns fishing for their supper--watching, learning, wondering. A week feeling very close to those daily tasks we have to do, one way or another. A week feeling again the meaningfulness of those daily tasks. 


And still, something to do every day, whether it is boiling water to rinse your dishes, or washing your dishes in the ocean, scrubbing the pots with sand.

Or walking... actually walking, rather than getting in a car, to buy groceries. Or walking to the library. Or just walking.... to beaches to collect sea glass, taking your Maine guide to wildlife to identify plants and seaweeds. Where exercise is related to daily necessary activities.

This is our credo: Life is better when it is connected to what is necessary. It will restore your soul. It will remind you why living can be both work and fun.