The Alaska State Writing Consortium
Northern Lit - ASWC's eZine

Coastline Rendezvous

by Joyce Autery

Sunshine radiates through
sliding door clouds while
my husband in his kayak skims
across flat water that shines
like a brass bed.

At dawn he knew paddling
would be superb.  Riding currents,
the ocean’s rivers, an inner harmony
leads him to his island destination.

From the rocky shore, a river otter
stares at the half man, half boat,
scrambles from her lookout
and dives into the water
swimming toward her burrow.

As the kayaker emerges from his craft
a bobbing head blinks her eyes,
slips into a nook to watch
from a comfortable distance
wondering what compels the man
to come to this remote inlet.
She wants to welcome him but cannot;
and views through these eyes
his joy of  being alone.

He catches her staring again
while he walks along the shore.
Then both glance away
following one another like hands
on a clock until he’s back
in his kayak, dissolving into
the horizon as they glide in
opposite directions, thinking about
each other awhile, before returning home.  

boating