Faith Webster Award Winner

Sea Lion Serenity

The waves drench the thirsty sand
and drain back into the sea
A shockingly cold contrast to my sand warmed feet
Goosebumps creep up my calves
Tentative steps bring the icy waterline
Up to my bellybutton
I dip myself beneath the next biting wave

When my face breaks into the sunlight
I see her
Streamlined, sleek, black, smooth, glossy
She skims just beneath the water's surface
and stops less that twenty feet away
to pop her head up like a periscope
I swear she looks directly into my eyes

As quickly as she arrived she disappears
as if it were a dream
My eyes sweep over the glistening cover of the sea
Floating hunks of kelp and sea foam
but no sea
I felt a twinge of disappointment and
I dip myself beneath the next biting wave

Katey Ball