Another Day at the Beach

Well, this year the beach wasn't quite so perfect. While it didn't exactly rain the whole time, the sun was conspicuous by its absence. Still, I'm not supposed to get in the sun, so that wasn't all bad, and we were able to spend some time on the beach three of the four days we were there. But a little more sun would have been nice.

Sun, however, isn't the only thing I go to the beach for. The main reason is to relax and enjoy the soothing effects of the sea. That we were able to do, taking long walks, watching the ocean and the other people at the beach, sitting for hours reading a history of American philosophy in the sea air, and then dashing into the surf for a quick swim.

The other reason for going to the beach is to mark the end of summer. That's why I like going at the end of August. When I return home, I know that summer is over and I've got to get my head back in synch with the normal rhythms of work and school and a world drifting into darkness.

A sort of melancholy sets in that reminds me of a poem called "The Gulf":

The boys are on the beach at sunset,
Outlined against purple sky,
Slipping in and out of water
That has darkened with evening.

We can see them, you and I,
From the beach house doorway,
Dashing through twilight seascapes,
Diving beneath velvet waves.

Your eyes mark their presence,
And you smile quietly to yourself--
Was it only my imagination,
Or did you start to say something?

As I watch you standing in shadows,
Looking out upon the water,
I remember how it felt, a boy on the beach,
And, no longer wet with salt-spray, I shiver.

Already, I'm looking forward to next summer.