Freedom

©David Challoner

The sea, the sea, I see the sea!
It glistens in the sun,
it's really rather cold in May
but an awful lot of fun.

You can run and splash and look for crabs
as long as you don't go far.
Your Mum will bring the sandwiches
and wait for you by the car.

You can search for ships against the sky,
make mud pies in the sand,
you can clamber up across the cliffs
to survey the far off land.

You can visit the little rocky pools
with your bucket and a net,
study the minnows and the crabs - 
see how many kinds you get.

And when your mother says it's time
to dry off and go home,
you can smell the salt and seaweed still
and a hint of ocean's foam.

©Janet Henderson 30th April 2017