THE EDGE OF FREEDOM

The kids burst out of the aquarium and run, whooping, onto the sand. They perform cartwheels and flips as their teachers order hot dogs for the lot of them. 

An old lady does her tai chi a little further down the beach. She is watched or ignored by the big, black-backed gulls on the rock. 

I taste salt in the air. I shouldn’t really be here. When you’re off work sick you should have the decency to stay in bed, and not behave like a tourist. 

I lick my lip and ignore my first thought about Margaritas. I let myself be reminded of Smithson. Having not yet visited any of his many wonderful museums in DC I am surprised that I learned one thing from the far reaching layers of his massive onions, although it is no surprise why it has presented itself.

a) Smithson conducted experiments to determine the chemical content of a lady’s teardrop. 

I wonder why that lady's tears should be thought any different than mine and I wonder if she cried for similar reasons but it doesn't really matter to me that she could have been and I wonder if that thought is sadder than all of this reality.