Sand

by Andrew Hede

He takes a moment to register that
the boy’s shrieks of delight
have changed in pitch and depth
from the thrill of chilly waves
slapping playfully
against his sun-soaked body,
to the agony of blue tentacles
wrapping hungrily
around his exposed tender skin.

Sweeping the boy into his arms,
he pounds up the steep dunes
legs driving feet deep into soft sand,
dread mounting as he
watches himself clambering
in slow-motion,
stumbling repeatedly
into a swearing crawl.

Eventually,
he reaches the beach house,
the boy now beyond pain
whimpering;
he sees her look of concern and
pauses a moment
awaiting her words of calm reassurance:
“Not the front door!
You’ll get sand on the carpet!”

• MacMasters Beach, NSW