Summer Thoughts

I spent the whole day without shoes, walking for hours down the endless sidewalks, past bait shops and surf paraphenelia and Japanese steakhouses. 

Do you remember how good it feels to run across hot black tar in ninety-seven degree weather?

Now, I’m nearly suffocating on the smell of the ocean, and sand is gathering in the spaces between my toes.

Was it a melted popsicle I stepped in that made feet sticky? I guess that’s the most logical explanation.

The sun set long ago and there’s only the light of the moon and the sounds of the waves dancing, falling forward and running back.

The motion usually makes me dizzy, but tonight I hold my stance, only swaying slightly as the ground shifts below me.

I imagine the foam as plankton and bits of seashells and maybe even half-decayed creatures, swirling around and smacking me in the face.

But it’s only salt I taste. What else is there, hidden just below the surface?

I’ve never been much of a swimmer, it’s hard to catch the waves just right.

So I’m content with standing; up to my ankles, shins, knees, thighs. I’m never afraid when the biggest waves come along, I just let them crash over me and swallow me when I fall.

Just relax and let myself be carried. Float to a place where I count stars and make my own constellations. The air is cooler out here and easier to breathe.

My thoughts are my only company, and somehow, I’m much more comfortable with the sea than any human being.