Scouting

Scouting

The bush hung at a preposterous angle from the fossil laden cliff, protecting the entrance to the cave. It’s leafy green head dipped into the free flowing water fall, while sinewy roots clung to cracks and crevices in the cliff wall. It was so wonderful swimming at the base of this water fall. After the strong ocean currents, the eddies and swirls of the small waterfall were child’s play. The sun was warm and a flat rock marked by tide and weather looked the perfect place to sun herself. 

But that’s not what she was here to do. She had been coming here for the last three days with her children. Today was different. She had them stay deep in the cave behind the waterfall. She was scouting - scouting for these..these...humans who thought that sneaking around trying to see a mermaid, and her children, was a game. Well she thought it was just plain rude. There was nothing she could do to drive them away. It wasn’t like she was a turtle that could just lie in the sun and bake. And with rambunctious children? What was a mer-mother to do?!

Today she came to sheltered pool earlier than the three other times. The sun warmed the water but the breeze blowing onto the spit from the ocean was cool. Her mother had told her that humans did not come out if it was too cool. So she swam in a slow circle, cautiously approaching the bush that had hidden the humans. All she could see was a crow in the shallows. At the edge of the water was a deer and her fawn. When she saw the deer, she relaxed.  There would be no deer if humans were near by. Slapping her tail on the still water three times, she signaled her children that it was safe, but startled the deer, her fawn and the crow. Long before the echo of sound died away, the water around the waterfall was churning with laughing mer-children riding their tails on the surface and diving deep into the gently bubbling waters.

“You can’t use up creativity.  The more you use, the more you have.”

 ~ Maya Angelou

**This final version, from a writing exercise of March 2011, again uses the same six words: bush, waterfall, mermaid, fossil, circle, preposterous.