Sea gulls calling
Small waves lapping on the sandy beach
Quarantine Bay
Sleepy as the dawn breaks
Yesterday was wind, ice and cold
Today, a gentle sea breeze
The waves are whispering
Silver ribbons kiss the sand
A Sulphur Crested Cockatoo squawks
He praises the warm sun
It is lovely here
Hearts melt all over the bay
The big thaw
New beginning is long overdue

The storm is over - no, not last week’s nor’easter - midterms. I hope you survived.

New England seems to be one, big, storm-of-the-month club. Campus is 5 minutes from Long Island Sound and I like to go watch the mesmerizing roil of the ocean when a storm’s rolling in.

The choppy hazel undulations, opaque as enamel, seem to coil-up - then suddenly slap the shoreline breakers as if testing their resolve. The wind whipped salt-water patterns, like folds of linen. The wind and salt water mist in your face feels as sharp and violent as glass shards.

The sun occasionally pierces the clouds like a knife strike only to be healed in moments. The whole scene is beautiful, immense and uncontrollable - like eating cake by the ocean. (song reference).

I once rode a horse along a lovely beach.
Its hooves flicking waves and sand
onto my hands and feet.
I enjoyed the breeze through my hair,
I breathed deep into my lungs,
I breathed the smell of ocean spray and horse hair
and fun!

Hey Mom,

I just wanted to tell you about the amazing day I am having. First, I woke up to water dripping on me, as if the leaky roof were trying to improve the lumpy bed by giving it a good soak- when the brochure said I “would feel closer to nature more than ever,” I didn't think it meant so literal. After salvaging some semi-dry clothes, I went outside to realize my car window had been broken into. It was dumb of me for leaving my laptop bag in the car when I got in last night, I was just so exhausted from the drive. Well, you know how I get when I get upset, so I chunked my phone, as if it was the one causing my great morning. It landed in some bushes, and after wrestling with the branches for a bit, I finally saw him. Not even ten feet away from my phone did I see the most beautiful pelican. Something about his simple eyes, looking at me with some mixture of boredom and apathy, made me realize where I was. The cool air filled my lungs, leaving smell of salt in my nose. The sand I was sitting in was warm from the sun, feeling like that cozy quilt grandma made for me years ago.
So yeah, today was an amazing day.

With Love,

Chris

An exhale to rid the conscious of deliberation and doubt,
to cleanse the body from worry and anxiety,
to center the soul to its origins,
a moment to bask in solitude;
a solo journey through life and it's many triumphs.