Another Beach

cloudy-day-at-the-beach

I visit a beach;
	a different one
	under the same sun
	as the one before.
Immediately it dares me to describe,
exposing a lack of vocabulary within my mind.
I know I can never do it justice in word
but I might try...

	I observe a tiny yorkshire terrier
	experience the tide for the first time
	I feel jealous
	so my imagination lets me inhabit the little creature
	for a moment...

	...and my little body shakes in trepidation
	as my owner lifts me
	placing me within the ice cold wetness 
	and now I've become the salt water 
	wrapping myself around warm bodies
	lapping against the shore
	tasting the sand
	refracting the sunlight
	distracting people
	from their otherworldly chores.

I watch a jack russell
bravely protecting his mistress
with nothing but his ego
as she lays underneath the sun
appearing from between rocks
he barks at other dogs
from a safe distance.

Nearby, I see a child immersed
completely in the moment
	just wonderful
	not wondering (where to next?)
	not thinking of next week
	not looking at a watch
just watching all about her
just wiggling her little toes
perhaps sensing in a child like way
she's been here before.

Everything that matters in life is here
I feel the loss of my father strongly
I yearn for children I never had
and yet in light of it all
I'm basking in the sunlight all the more
hearing sounds almost out of earshot
drawing them in
relishing the summer seaside symphony
squawking seagulls 
toddlers overwhelmed by their senses
children screaming out with joy
	parents watching and overseeing
	allowing themselves some fun along the way
older folks quietly observing
finding their wisdom within the moment
appreciating dogs 
for being dogs.

...and then there's me
emptying words upon the sand
thinking one might do the work of many
looking at my watch
time to go in a bit...

	sea cave
	jelly fish
	conch and stone
	rusty old trawler
	bleached white bone
	sandcastle
	driftwood
	bucket and spade
	savour this moment
	lest it fade.

© Peter Smallwood

Image Credit

Review

Sid, I like your refreshing write; I see an adult immersing himself in the mind of a little dog or that of a small child, and then visualizing what he might do based on whatever his imagination might prompt him to pursue.

“I observe a tiny yorkshire terrier
experience the tide for the first time
I feel jealous
so my imagination lets me inhabit the little creature
for a moment…”

The above is a notion that appeals to me.  Dogs, horses, cats—all have enough gray matter to think rudimentary thoughts.  Dogs have dreams about chasing bunnies and sausages; even my cats dream.  For certain, our domesticated animals seem to have the thinking capability of two-year old children, plus a superior instinct for survival (excepting my silly dogs, a dachshund and a min-pin, lol).  Too often I sense those little wheels in their noggins spin at the sight of a hawk or coyote, which is quite a worrisome  experience to me; they are too brave for their own good; nothing scares those two.  Pardon my rambling, but I find your write quite stimulating.

Jerry Kemp