Stuff I Write: The Work of Loving an Ocean

Every once in a while, my 9-5 extends me the good fortune of seeing another city besides the Nasty Nati (As we locals oh so affectionately refer to it). This time around, it was LA. And, while the man was trying to keep me down by having me spend all day Monday flying in, all day Tuesday working, and all day Wednesday flying back, I was able to sneak a few moments away for myself. Two moments to be exact.

In the first "moment," I reunited with my OSU bestie. Fellow accounting class flunkie turned law student. ::Heart:: We had an awesome dinner and, after the obligatory, “what have you been doing since undergrad Q&A session,” we had a really great conversation about life, law school, and the scariness of getting older.

In the second “moment,” I snuck away and went to the beach. I’ve always had this weird love affair with the beach and knew that I would forever regret being so close to the coast and not visiting my love:-) So, I grabbed a cup of Starbucks, hopped a cab and bounced off to Venice beach. It was early and still and, apparently, too early for the crazies and homeless folks to be out. I felt like I had the whole beach to myself (minus the studly surfer boys) and felt more than inspired to write. This is what came out of it.

Enjoy!

The Work of Loving an Ocean
BY Susan Baba

You come
And lick my toes coyly
If I didn’t know you, sly boy,
I would think you shy as you softly caress my feet
Ankles
Calf
Then my whole leg
White hand wrapping around me

Strong
Surrounding me
Threatening to take me with you
And, for a moment, completely mine
Before you pull away from me,
I surrender
Before you retreat,
I whisper a promise of forever
Come back, water lover
I promise to be everything you cannot be
Promise you legs to engulf
Flesh to hold on to
Promise to give you freedom
If only, you will belong to me
You come thundering back towards me
A white crescent of a man
Arms extended
Wooing me with your cool, inviting kiss
This is what love is like
Sometimes unrequited, yet filled to the brim with promise
Always stretching farther than the eye can see
I follow you
Wait for you
Puff up with joy when you return to me
Stand quietly
Preparing myself for your slow flirting
First toes
Then ankles
Claves
Knees
Your soft tongue licks them all
You’ve swept away countless lovers like this, I know
And though you’ll be gone again without notice
I’m prepared to dance like this forever.