for my birthday.
i dip below the surface of the water and glide, softly, turn under water just so i can feel the light brush of my hair against my bare shoulders. then again, a breath, hands to my eyelids to wipe away the water. i want to be able to see where i’m going.
up ahead the buoy floats, bear island its steady backdrop. i know the evening-lit lives of its inhabitants intimately, i have watched them on nights when i have to get away, when their party lights flit over the water toward me.
today, i am alone and lovely. behind me the waterfront bustles with swim lessons and girls stretched out on towels, waiting to tan their skin. i spread my fingers in the water and twirl, let the sky blur into one solid blue.
this is what i want. freedom, again. summer, water, air.
