One Summer Night

by Bernadette D. Arwood
(California)

Mary creped out of her tent, she had worried about being caught, but it would be worth it. She wasn’t sure what time it was, but it was a beautiful night. A large grand full moon had lit the sandy beach trail ahead of her. It was much quieter now. The large crowds had gone home. As she made her way down to the beach she saw a couple of teens standing around a distant bonfire. Their laughter faded into the cool night sky. All she could hear now was the crashing of the large waves; it had felt somewhat mystical to her. The once warm sand now felt cool in-between her toes. As she glanced out into the large ocean waves she was no longer blinded by the glistening sun reflecting off the waves, instead she could see the moon’s sparkling reflection. Mary felt comforted by the light of the moon. It was like Mother Nature’s nightlight. On the beach were some hermit crabs squandering across the sand. The large ocean rocks took on a large dark form in the ocean. Her eyes carefully examined the beach. She noticed something appeared to be moving in the sand. It frightened her a bit, but also intrigued her curiosity. Was it what she had hoped for? She needed to get a closer look; she picked up a long piece of drift wood just in case. She walked ever gently across the sand to get a closer look. Her eyes lighted up at the sight of a large sea turtle. She was careful not to disturb it. She watched it kick through the sand, preparing to lay its eggs. It was quite the sight she had longed to see. As Mary glanced across the beach she noticed the teens had left and the once lit bonfire was now just a shadowy mound. Mary took one last look up at the moon then quickly glided across the sand back towards her tent. What an amazing night Mary had. She loved the ocean at night, it was peaceful and full of tranquility, it was almost as if the ocean had belonged to her and her alone, and she preferred it that way.