The Sea

I had headphones stuck in my ears at one point today while a Jack Johnson song poured out. In the background were waves. Crashing on the beach. Crashing might be a strong word, maybe they were rolling onto it.

Now I have never lived by the sea. I have never lived within an hour of the sea. But I would like very much one day to live by the sea. There is this image of what living by the sea would be like in my head.

I imagine myself walking out the beach at night and staring out past the waves into the blackness. I would stay there for a long time, since it wouldn't be too cold by this sea. A breeze would blow the salt air into my face, and I would talk to God until it was morning or I fell asleep. With the sound of waves playing in the background.

I wouldn't be bored, because there would always be the sea five minutes away. It would be easier to get up in the morning, because I would know that if I felt like it, I could go to the sea that day. With the sea would come fluency in languages. People would be easier to get along with, because everyone would know that if things got too stressful, they could just walk to the sea. If I started feeling sorry for myself, or thought too much about myself, or critiqued myself, I would walk out to the sea and realize that there is more to the world than just me.

I would probably learn to surf, and have a book of poetry published. The sea inspires people to write really good poetry. I would jog along the sea either early in the morning or in the evening, in my bare feet. I would feel like I could run for hours, because I would have the sand hitting the bottom of my feet. Occasionally I would veer into the waves, just before they left to go back out to sea. I would find things that washed up on shore. I would have a small boat that I took out to sea when the sun was coming up.

I think these thoughts about the sea. It's beautiful really. In Spanish the word for sea is mar. La mar. It can be el mar as well. But people who live by the sea call it la mar, feminine, because the sea is like a mother to them. From it comes their way of life and entire livelyhood.

It might be good though if I never live by the sea. Then I wouldn't ever have to face the possibility that maybe the sea isn't everything I dream it to be.