Not even cats purring could keep me on the back stoop that Sunday morning in September of 2000, so full of blue sky and autumn air. I loaded my camera, packed a lunch and drove east from Houston to 61 South where fresh-cut pasture smelled as fragrant as Ivory soap.

Veered left at the “Y” onto Farm Road 1985, where after a good rain turtles traveled too. Over the arched bridge at the intercoastal canal and marsh that spread like green velvet to the Gulf. Up the hill to the salt dome known as High Island, where birds came to rest. Past leaning oaks that once gave shade at the Sea View Hotel (another story).

Until I reached Bolivar Peninsula and a little beach called Caplen where, two days before, a storm had blown through. Trash, snared in finely ground seaweed, strewn the shoreline like dead fish in a net. But I knew wherever there was seaweed there laid treasure. I’d come to look for it and like the treasure itself, let my mind drift for miles.

Beachcombers call them Sea Beans and believe you me, to beachcombers — they’re as thrilling to find as shark’s teeth!

Here’s how one article “Hitchhiking on Currents” describes them:

“Seeds and fruits are among the world’s most intriguing trans-oceanic voyagers. Their itineraries begin in the tropics, where plants drop them into rivers, estuaries, and coastal waters. Propelled by wind and currents and staying afloat for as long as 30 years, they can drift for thousands of miles. They have always had an exotic allure. The sea hearts that Columbus collected on an Azores beach allegedly inspired him to sail west in search of their origin. The coco-de-mer was prized by peoples around the Indian Ocean for its reputed medicinal and aphrodisiac qualities.”

I’ve been collecting Sea Beans since I was a kid. Of the nine different varieties, I have about four or five best I can figure. There’s a bowl full of Sea Beans sitting on our dining room table, that regardless of the season, serves as a constant centerpiece.

My friend, Robert Smith (Au Vieux Paris Antiques), treasures them too. Some years ago, I gave him one of the Sea Heart variety and Robert tells me even when he travels abroad he puts it in his pocket and carries it with him. I understand this. There’s just something soothing about this smooth to the touch bean.

No matter how often my “little people” friends (children) come over — they’re still drawn to the Sea Beans like they’re discovering them for the first time. They’ll dig their fingers deep down into the bowl as eagerly as if it were a cookie jar and pull up a handful. Speaking of which, remember those Nabisco cookies called Devil’s Food? Some sea beans look identical.

In 1995 and by surprise circumstances, a dream came true! P and I purchased a little cottage on Caplen that sat atop the bluff like a perfect little purse. The closing was held on Cinco de Mayo and immediately after signing the papers we made a beeline to Bolivar like newlyweds leaving a church.

Most all of the cottages on Caplen had a name, often displayed somewhere on the house …“The Nautilus” “The Seawillow” “The Breakers” “Driftwood.” “We’ll have to think of a good name,” I mused while driving down.

After unloading the car, I wanted to walk the beach. I’d no sooner hit the sand when I looked down and saw, seemingly waiting there for me, a Coral Bean, which is another variety of Sea Bean. I was so thrilled I ran up to the house gripping it in my hand and yelling out to P — “I got the name! I got the name!”

P would refer to our cottage as our little “bait camp on Bolivar” but to me … it was and forever will be our beloved “Sea Bean.”

Sadly, we sold the “Sea Bean” in the spring of 2000. But I agree with something that Dr. Seuss once said, “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.” And indeed I do.

The “Sea Bean,” along with all the other cottages, were wiped from the earth like plates from a tabletop by Hurricane Ike. But on occasion I still travel there like I did that autumn day in 2000 and comb the beach for Sea Beans and other treasure. Now more than ever — the beach alone is a treasure.

Amazingly, the land where the “Sea Bean” once sat still appears to have, however small, a hill. I think how remarkable that is. Just like when I discover a Sea Bean and wonder about its voyage.

9 Species of Sea Beans:

Screw Pine (Pandanus tectorius)
Origin: Polynesia
Size: 6 cm

Anchovy Pear (Grias cauliflora)
Origin: New World tropics
Size: 4-9 cm

Tropical Almond (Terminalia catappa)
Origin: Asian tropics
Size: 8 cm

Box Fruit (Barringtonia asiatica)
Origin: Polynesia
Size: 8-15 cm

Puzzle Fruit (Heritiera littoralis)
Origin: Southeast Asia
Size: 6-9 cm

Crabwood (Carapa guianensis)
Origin: New World tropics
Size: 1-6 cm

Coral Bean (Erythrina spp.)
Origin: tropics
Size: 1-2 cm

Sea Heart (Entada gigas)
Origin: New World tropics
Size: 6 cm

Coco-de-mer (Lodoicea maldivica)
Origin: Seychelles
Size: 46 cm