I kept following the water
down the braiding of waves, of sand,
pursuing the ebb lines
where the incoming waves were faint,
but watching for the buildup
where two or three would join
and I would run from them
up the beach, letting them catch me,
but not by much,
holding my skirts (mostly)
out of their reach

The children on the beach
jumped and ran
with the energy of the waves,
the same quick action,
the same total engagement

We filled up with their joy
and their abandon, and the steady
but ever changing
motion of the sea,
soothing us, bringing us,
though through shifting sands,
to firmer ground .

©Wendy Mulhern
August 12, 2021i