Puddles
A story about the sea
Puddles weren’t really around when I was a kid. It didn’t rain much where we lived, so we spent a lot of time in the ocean. Now that’s a big puddle!
A big puddle to jump in, a big swimming pool to play in, a big new world to explore. Familiar places but always changing with the seasons. Hot, cold, murky, clear, full of life, empty spaces, deep, shallow; what will we find today? Looking through the rock pools and swimming as far as we could.
My brother was my partner in crime as we explored the scene together. Whale bones and old cart wheels. Slimy grass and sharp coral. Eels, jellyfish, octopuses, sting rays, and fish everywhere. Snorkelling in the deep blue and finding caves in the reef. Seeing crayfish and bailer shells as sea lions and dolphins swam by. Our playground in paradise.
But where did that place go? I remember it well but can’t find it today. They’ve gone and covered it with sand. Sand that washes over the reef; where are all the fish and octopuses? They add more every week; where are the eels and the stingrays? Even the jellyfish have moved on. Dust fills the air now instead of sea spray.
I remember when I was a kid. It didn’t rain much where I lived, so we spent a lot of time in the ocean…
