At sunset I lay on the beach with my toes pointing west. The sand is still warm and the stars are beginning to appear overhead. I looked to the right and see the circumpolar constellations beginning their dance around the Great Bear.
Other than by the ocean swell the silence is broken only by the early evening insects' calls as they rush to gather the end of the light.
The surf tickles my toes and climbs my legs; the ocean's heartbeat, retreating and returning.
Something cool, damp and alive wraps tendrils around my ankles and tugs me into the waves.