As the sun began its ascent into the sky above Boca Raton, Florida a small crowd began to gather near and on the pavilion at 1 South Ocean Boulevard. When I arrived at 5:25 am, I was the only human on the beach. By 6:00 am, the diversity of the crowd had become more than a little bit obvious. Behind me was a group of people from the conservative Jewish faith, mostly men, gathered for morning prayers and to my right was a photo/video shoot for what I can only describe as “assless” workout pants.

It was a beautiful display of groups from opposite ends of the values spectrum, gathered within 100 meters of each other at sunrise for different purposes. They were joined by fishermen, lovers on blankets, people getting in the daily beach workouts, and a couple of tourists like me gathered to capture the vista. This microcosm of a melting pot was as beautiful to see as the gorgeous South Florida sunrise.

Jeff Turner

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