out and across

image by mostafa habibi courtesy of tess at magpie tales

secure inside the finest softest sand imagineable

my body washed by the memories of waves

i stood entirely still

my heart beating purely out of obligation

i was capable of being and doing

nothing more than was necessary

.

until one night

the moon

drew her body tight about the ocean

and running her fingers across it's liquid body

with greater conviction

and effect than usual

she caused the water to pull back layer upon layer of sand

until finally

by chance and happenstance

my eyes

were exposed

and an entire world

of sky and ocean expanded before me

i felt its fullness

in my own becoming self

and even now

as i gradually withdraw my body and my self

from the comforting clasp of the somnolent sand

i feel my heart beating

a rhythm it hasn't played for decades

and wish for nothing more than to feel

the simplicity of the sand between my toes.