But I get a few precious days on Gabriola first. I wrote the following last night, fingers still numb from swimming in the water:
sunset prayers
the sky was like a big simple watercolour wash -
light grey on top, and darker grey-blue on the bottom.
smooth lapping water, calm at low tide.
climbing out, I took in mouthfuls of saltwater
and blew them out into a mist - hoou! hhoo!
my usual tradition, makes me feel like a sea creature, standing tall.
while drying myself off i see a distant spot in the water.
I keep watching. this time i hear a big breath:
hooooouuu.
now a dorsal fin, pointed straight up, a lone transient orca.
he takes quick dives, only under for a few seconds
before the fin re-emerges, larger and closer every time,
hoooooouu.
a nearby seal hears it now, and moves in close to land,
closer than I've ever had a seal swim towards me.
his back is to me, we're both looking out at the water,
watching the fin pass by.
hhooooouu.
there is so much power and meaning in these wordless encounters.
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