27 August 2007

monday: water



I wait for the waves to come swirling around my feet and when they do, I gasp. the northwestern pacific ocean waters are cold cold cold. gorgeous, but so icy cold. enough to send me running for the blanket, which I immediately sprawl out on. I stretch my arms and legs out until I am a giant letter X. I look towards the sun for warmth and I miss the gulf. I miss the balmy air, the quiet turquoise waters, the way the unrelenting heat forces bodies into the ocean. I am remembering how it felt to wade out into the water-- how my body took on the soft undulations, how the uneven slap of waves felt against my skin, how I let my arms float just above the surface. have you ever tried to stand still in the ocean? it's nearly impossible. I love that. then there's that spectacular feeling of forever. same brilliant feeling of infinity here on the west coast, though I can't help but miss the ocean that I know. I don't know this ocean. I can't imagine loving an ocean with waters so cold.

ava refuses to let the cold interrupt her happiness. instead, she embraces the temperature of the water with an enviable enthusiasm. I shiver just watching her and she pleads with me to join in. too cold, I yell out. she insists that it's not cold, that it feels good. you just have to get used to it, she says. and that is what I am trying to do. I am trying to get used it. I am trying to get used to everything. I am trying so hard.

I hear her laugh and watch her skip towards the water, watch small white waves cover her feet. she opens her arms wide and throws her head back. she is dancing now, oblivious to the cold.

(for lovely shari's week of natural elements: monday/water, tuesday/earth, wednesday/air, thursday/fire, friday/metal)

19 comments:

  1. Beautiful. I love it. Great shot and wonderful words, Andrea.

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  2. i feel your pain. i feel it more than i know how to say. after over a decade of living in the north (aka ohio) i finally live in an apt complex with a pool. a pool that is freezing, freezing cold on the hottest of hot days. i feel cheated. no one told me that pools in ohio need to be heated even when they are outside. i braved it once with teeth chattering and i can't get up the courage to go back in. that is saying alot loving water the way i do.

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  3. great picture and commentary.

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  4. Hi there, I'm de-lurking to say not only that I very much enjoy your prose, but also that your post brought back feelings from my childhood. I grew up on the Pacific, a few latitudes north of where you are, and your description of trying to stand still in the ocean brought back waves (so to speak) of nostalgia.

    Give the Pacific some time... it is really a lovely thing, if a bit more shy than its sister to the south.

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  5. I dig the way you describe standing in the ocean.
    "Yay!" to Ava for being so temperature-tough.

    ...and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that photograph. The colors! The cracked/aged edges! How did you do it?

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  6. What a wonderful post -- great picture too, wow.

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  7. hello love. the pacific coast is most certainly different - but there's other kinds of water too ....

    beautiful... XO

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  8. this photo and this post are so beautiful. spirit personified.

    for my 'water' post today, i went to the wading pool at jamison square park for the very first time. i remembered your post about it (or about having to pass it by)... and it doesn't compare to the great wide, ocean, though it is a little sliver of the promised-land in this mini metropolis.

    i love these words, your metaphor. children jump. they dive in with instinctive trust. adults, we take our time. we wade in. so i just wanted to wish you all strength and grace in this time of getting used to it. :)

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  9. lovely image and words and thoughts.

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  10. I love this. how did you get that shot to look so amazing? i agree with your thoughts on the Pacific. I didnt get the whole fascination with the ocean until i moved to a warmer climate.

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  11. just amazing...the words and the photo.

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  12. Beautiful. I held my breath.

    We just vacationed in Portland and the Oregon coast. Same thing. Way too cold. Cold, cold. But the feeling of forever... Yes.

    Thanks for the delicious post.

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  13. I'm also de-lurking on this one.
    wonderful picture and thoughtful, heartfelt post. kids find it so easy to experience the joy and the "feels good" moments... I'm not sure why, though the ability for Ava to do so must be credited at least in part to the fact that her momma makes her comfortable, her center is with you and your family. sometimes it's harder for adults to remember where to find that center, that place where everything is okay... I don't know.. maybe don't try so hard, just remain open to it?

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  14. So beautiful, I love the nostalgia the photo emotes...

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  15. i'm on the other side (northeast atlantic) i wonder if it is as cold. i used to be able to walk along the waters edge without so much as a blink. now my feet cramp it's so cold...
    you're right there is no being still in the ocean.
    beautiful image and words

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  16. That photo is GORGEOUS! Did you use a Holga to take that shot?

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  17. This photo is fantastic. Did you take it recently? I love its filmic quality.

    Would love you to check out my blog - www.vintagefilm.typepad.com.

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  18. your words pull at my heart strings
    and i relate

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