An Ocean City Surf Show

A gentle breeze, hot afternoon sun and a playful surf found me sitting in my sand chair absentmindedly staring out at the hypnotic motion of the glassy sea. Suddenly, something appeared, then just as quickly disappeared just beyond the foamy white breaker line. I squinted in the midday sun, straining to focus on the spot, scanning the area. Moments went by drenched in the sounds of small groups of greedy gulls flying past. Then there it was, a dolphin arched out of the water just a few dozen yards offshore making its way northward.

Magically, the frothy swells came alive with a glistening grey ballet. More dolphins appeared, at first gently breaking the surface in a carefully orchestrated dance, then bursting into a flashy show of leaping, spinning and twisting glossy grey acrobats each intent on outperforming the next. For a half hour I sat there enjoying this show-these glorious graceful creatures, playing or performing, returning for encores, then all at once turning northward, resuming their gentle arches as they swam away to their next venue.

Suzanne Gaston Sachs
originally written while sitting on the beach on a hot June afternoon in 2005