Saved by seals

Well, it's been a slow week so far. I think my decision to take a short blogging break was wise, because all I would have been doing is whinging about how much I hate studying, how little work I have done and so on and so forth, which I sincerely doubt anyone else is interested in reading about. Besides which, the more I whine about stuff, the worse I feel, so it's in my best interests to bottle it all up until I have some kind of crisis because of the internal pressure and bust a valve of some sort.

I realized this week how lazy I have been this year because I only just started wearing my reading glasses. Normally if I sit in front of a computer or books without them for more than an hour I get headaches. This hasn't been happening, so clearly I've been taking it pretty easy.

Yesterday I was feeling morose all day until dusk, when we went for a walk down to the beach and out onto the causeway. The sun was setting and it was quiet and dim and soothing, and in the hush we could hear puffing and splashing coming from out in the water. There were two seals splashing around, having a grand old time. Watching them slide above and below the water was good for me I think. It made me forget about exams, about all this civilization nonsense.

The sea is good when you're stressed. It's big, it's mysterious, it's grey and green and blue, it's like the night sky but you can reach out and dip your hand in it in a way that you can't with the stars unless you've got really long arms. It has a way of reminding you of your insignificance and making you feel more humble and also more grateful for things being the way they are, largely beyond your control. It gives you perspective, and the perspective is this: we're just dust in the water, so you might as well just float.

Good luck with whatever trials are coming. They're just waves. From the top you can see further. Enjoy the view.