Mussel-Bay Poem by Daleen Enslinstrydom

The sand and the sea and the sun
are things that heal the soul
and with the long drive from Gauteng now behind us
we sit on a bench drinking something cold
and are overlooking the tranquil bay.

The wind is playful through our hair,
the sky is almost scarlet-blue
and we take in the panoramic view
of the lighthouse on a hillock
overlooking the sea
and the view is picture perfect.

The waves crush against rocks
where they break on the shore
while we sit and watch some seagulls
as they are scavenging
and everywhere tourists are to be seen
in their colourful clothes and bathing suits.

In a moment almost a hundred rock rabbits appear
out of their shelters in the rocks
when a man tosses out some lettuce
and children try to catch them
while cameras flash.

We take the rocky footpath up to the lighthouse
and look down at dad sitting on a bench
where he looks so very happy
while he is feeding his last chips to the seagulls.

From the top of the lighthouse
we are exhausted from the climb
but the bay lies open in front us,
the town and surrounded arias
looks tiny but beautiful
and on the horizon we see ships passing by.

Our days pass far too quickly
and soon our holiday is over.
On our last day
just as the first
we sit on a bench overlooking the bay
and are eating ice-cream
that drip from our hands.

We pick up some shells
and are like children
but there is a kind of silence between us
and although we do not talk
we do all have the same thought:

when will we have an opportunity
to come back again?