Tsunami

“Let’s go to the beach!”

We cried.  And you smiled and 

Said with your mouth that you were happy to go

And your eyes did not move.

“Isn’t the water beautiful?”

We cried.  And you smiled and 

Said with your mouth that it was so very beautiful

And your eyes clouded in the bright summer sun.

“Come into the water with us!  The beautiful, cool water!”

We cried.  And you smiled and

Said that the water was beautiful indeed

With your toes tautly anchored in the shifting sand.

“Come ride the waves with us!”

We cried.  And you smiled and 

Said that you wanted to try

As you clutched yourself in the rising surf.

“The water is so very cold!”

You cried.  And we smiled at your winter-white skin 

Wondering why the water was so cold for you

Only for you.

“The water is so very cold!”

You cried.  And we smiled as you withdrew 

From the water’s embrace,

Retreating under t-shirts and sweaters and shorts and towels and sunglasses and hats

Far from the water’s edge.

Perhaps for you the water will always forever be cold.  

Perhaps for you the water will always be treacherous.

You flung yourself from your island home across the ocean

Gasping and panting for air on our shores, breathing language so different from your own.

Never far from the ocean that ravaged your own shores

And ravages them still in your dreams so that you fall asleep only with the light on.

Perhaps you will always be watching the ocean.

Perhaps you will always wonder when it will return for the rest of you.