By Chris Paul
Suzanne sat on a large log, looking out to sea. The tide had fully retreated. It was one of the lowest neap tides of the year. Large patches of pungent sandy mud filled the spaces between the exposed rocks, acres of seafloor normally covered with plenty of water. She could see him in the distance, collecting the large blue-black mussels and depositing them into a pail. She had met him once before and he had invited her to accompany him once again, with the promise of a home-cooked meal afterward. Suzanne agreed with pleasure. She was attracted to his well-developed muscles.
Evocative , beautiful – and then splendid bathos in that ghastly pun. Superb.
Thank you Liz
The neap tide description inhabits a strong sense of the place
Excellent descriptive literary piece, Chris. I had the feeling all the time that I was right there and then. Keep writing and sending your good works.
Thank you, Rudolph, for the encouragement.
Witty and romantic.
Spring tide not neap, I think.
Thanks, David…Neap tides occur when the sun, moon, and Earth form a right angle, and this causes the regular high tides and low tides to become much lower than usual.
You are right about the cause but not the effect. At spring tides, the high tides are at their highest and the lows at their lowest. At neaps, the tidal range is reduced so the highs are not so high and the lows are not so low. A quick look at the tide tables for your nearest port will show how it works.
Still a great piece of writing.
Thanks for the correction David. I appreciate it.
I had to look up neap tide. Evocative!