Heart of the Pacific

Heart of the Pacific

Photography by Carole MacLean

 

 

Heart of the Pacific

By Jordan Bernal

Time flows, water carves

A heart etched forever in stone

Till time ebbs away

Heart of the Pacific

By Paula Chinick

Mar Pacifico

Grand is your immensity

In awe we marvel

Regarding Heart of the Pacific 

by Di Lovitt

I wonder if this is a closeup of a small tide-pool with tiny pebbles, or can we really place our foot in the algae water and fit our hand into the heart, or are we looking off an incline into a swimming hole?  The photo may trick us and make us loose our perspective. 

 

Monterey Bay, December 2010

 

Photo and Poem

by Carole MacLean 

The path curves as the sea lures

Creating wonder wrapped in fear;

Whispers of wind, the shores begin

The heart of the Pacific is near.

 

The rocks below create a glow

I feel the pull of the tides;

In and out, to and fro

The heart of the Pacific rides.

 

Beating as one, the waves and sun

I hear the ocean’s call;

The fractured light, seems so bright

Nighttime will surely fall.

 

The path is long, I don’t belong

The shadows cast a spell;

I see the shape, around the cape;

The skies will surely tell.

 

The seas can free the soul that weeps;

The one who will risk it;

The water smoothes its shores too soon

You’re in the Heart of the Pacific.

 

By Carl Gamez 

A day at the beach can be magic for a young boy. For Jimmy Wiggins, an adventurous six year old, even ordinary days were magic. But this summer was special, away from his mother and on an island paradise with his dad. Every day his dad would ride the waves at Kinawee Point. His father, Jimmy Sr., had surfed all his life, but prior to this, only in California. But since the divorce, it was time to live his dream. Island life suited him perfect.  When the surf was up, work could wait, an attitude he could live with.

Jimmy stood on his dad’s board and rocked it back and forth on the sand pretending to be riding the waves. His dad lifted him off the surfboard and planted him on the sand. “Hey buddy, you stay here with Susan and play with your sandcastle while daddy goes surfing.” He kissed the young Polynesian lady on the lips and gave her a swat on her almost bare bottom. He pointed a stiff finger at her and said, “You watch him good.”

With a scowl she said, “Kiss my ass. You owe me big time. The waves are pumping, and I’m making sandcastles?”

“Okay, I owe you. I’ll be an hour, maybe two, then I’ll come in and you can go out.”

“I’ll be pissed if it’s blown out by then.” She frowned as she watched little Jimmy jump on top of the sandcastle. “Great, now what?”

“Have him make another one or take him to the tide pools, but hurry the tide’s coming in.”

“You butt, in two hours the waves will be all mushy.”

He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and said, “We’ll go out later. The tide will be going back out at five. Should be some good tube rides.” He ran off with his two friends with their surfboards, baggy shorts, and leashes strapped to their ankles. They dove into the surf and started their paddle to the lineup. One of his friends said, “Yo man, that’s cold. Making your chick babysit.”

Big Jim glanced back as he paddled. “She’ll be fine. Girls love puppies and little kids. Besides, these waves are rippin’. She couldn’t handle them anyway.”

Little Jimmy leaped off a rock and into the tide pool. He reached for a small crab, but it escaped into a crevice. His little eyes came alive in his magical world of tiny sea creatures and strange plants. The surge pushed and pulled. The different colors and shapes of seaweeds laid flat in one direction and then were pulled in the opposite direction, toward the heart of the sea. Susan yelled, “Hey Jimmy, you be good. I’ll be right over here talking to my friends, okay.”

A monstrous set of waves rolled in. Big Jim caught the best wave of his life. He dropped in and carved a turn up to the lip. He tore open the aquamarine mountain of water with his cut backs and turns leaving a white trail of foam in his wake. He rose to the crest of the fifteen foot face and slashed back into the curl. He tried to turn back out of the tumbling and churning white water but caught an edge and went down. Up he went, up and over, like a toothpick in a waterfall. The thunderous crash against the reef split his board in two. He made the long swim in and saw Susan with her friends.  Hunched over, he gasped for breath. “Hey babe, can you go to the car and get my other board.” He pleaded.

“Get it yourself,” she whined.

“Holy crap, seriously? I just got my ass kicked by a killer wave and swam to shore. I’m dead.”

“Okay.” She glared at him and went to her purse and grabbed the car keys. 

Still breathing hard, Big Jim said, “I swear. I’ll make it up to you.”

“Whatever,” Susan snapped back and stomped off.

Jim looked to the right, then glanced back to the left. He asked Susan’s friends, “Hey, where’s Jimmy, my son?”

The two girls raised their shoulders and pouted, “We didn’t see no kid.” They went back to poking their thumbs into the keys of their cell phones.

He yelled at Susan, “Hey, where’s Jimmy?”

She flipped her head and hand to the side and pointed, “Over there in the tide pool.”