Past dawn, winds rage
Rain threatens and sun
Pierces through clouds like
A divine cinematographer
Inviting the intrepid
To refresh our spirits
As I walk I taste salt
Nearing where land ends
And ocean begins
The briny scent increases
I am guided by rainbows
I know, it is hard
To believe

Refraction, reflection
Refraction again
Ever increasing
In magnitude
One rainbow follows
Another from faint
To larger, to darker
I gasp in joy—it was
Already enough
And then, more
A double rainbow begins
And ends in golden salt grass
Close to the shore
The widest, most vibrant
Rises and disappears
Into the stormy skies

At last I make it to
The beach, my senses
Flooding with the redolence
And glory of a trinity
Waves, light and shadow
Like a cathedral before me
I pray as I walk, for him
His job and his prospects
I pray for her health
Her release from struggle
And her next steps
I pray for my own story
To make more sense
And I pray to the sea
To set us free

Heading toward boulders
Alone on the shoreline
The surf gets closer
More fierce at every turn
Invigorated by its majesty
I find a place to watch
Like a mermaid
Preparing to dive
Waves crash, foam fizzes
Splashes and sprays me
First gently, then
More aggressively
As if baptizing me in
The duality of innocence
And ferocity, I laugh
Aloud—a child again
My face covered
In salt water, my eyes
Stinging

I stand, drenched, my curls
Taking on the ocean’s abandon
Like my spirit, yearning
For such wildness
I stay until hail begins to fall
Until bracing winds threaten
To push me over, I try
To hold onto my elation
Until I must retreat
Toward the street
To our temporary home
My pace, unhurried
Reluctant

A question arises
Unbidden:
Have I been placed
On the earth
Just to experience
This?

Originally titled “The Sea Cried for Me,” a friend and fellow writer encouraged a new name, “This is a happy piece. You make no mention of your tears.” Sure enough, they disappeared when I walked out of the house, beckoned by the ocean a short walk away.