go in through the
BIG gate
past
the
BALLOON inside a balloon stand
& there's a sort of
SUNKEN
WALKWAY
a long thin cement pond
statues of animals
STAIRS
on all sides
leading down from
GROUND level
COVERED
& SPACE
filled in with live oaks
LIKE
a tunnel
KINDA leading
BACK
to an EXHIBIT that I loved
SO
I KNEW
my new friend
was a
SEAL
although this seal
LOOKED
a little
DIFFERENT
it wasn't
MOVING quickly
SLIPPING around a platform
POSING this WAY
& THAT
for FISH
my new friend SEEMED to be POSING in a position that didn't SEEM like it could be
SUSTAINABLE
SO
I became
MORE and MORE
CERTAIN
it was probably an inflatable seal
BUT
it was STILL a good distance from me
EVEN
when I was
EVEN
with it
I just KEPT TRYING to get CLOSER
&
JUST
as I was
LEANING out
OVER the SIDE of the PIER
my aunt joan, gran gran, and e.e. caught up to me
& PULLED me BACK
I DID SEE
SOME
kind of
SIGN
next to my new friend
BUT I couldn't
READ it
BUT
they had either
DECIDED on what to do
OR
the IDEA of having to
RESCUE me
made them
DECIDE
to just get on with it
we ate in the big glass box
I continued to
PICK
at the starfish
& everything was pretty
UNEVENTFUL
with the lunch, or early dinner, or whatever it was
I ALWAYS
WONDERED
what my friend was ADVERTISING
& then years later
driving along
the PCH
I PULLED OVER
got out of the car
WALKED AROUND
a HUGE MASS of SEALS laying on the beach
& they didn't MOVE
ANY MORE
than napping cats
& I was LIKE
AM I ALLOWED to
just walk all around the napping SEALS
WELL
WHO'S
gonna
STOP me
