For the Very First Time

By Barbara L. Kanehl

She sat there, pensively taking in her new surroundings.  Never before had she experienced such a place. It was immense and so bright that she could barely keep her eyes open! She stood, taking in all the brand new sensations; the smells, the warmth, the tropical breeze blowing softly through her fine blonde hair.  The sounds seemed to come from everywhere!  What lay ahead before her was breathtakingly beautiful and never-ending. She could easily walk to it as nothing stood in her path. But it was so vast!  What was this place, she thought?

After a short pause, she cautiously ventured forward to this immense view. It sparkled invitingly and seemed to move ever so slightly.  Then nervously, she hesitated and pondered whether she should forge ahead or return to where she once stood. This was an adventure she wasn’t sure she wanted to undertake . . . alone.

While mulling it over, something else caught her attention.  It was up above, toward the light!  As she squinted from the bright sunlight, she watched in amazement as shadows of creatures swooped and soared overhead with ease.  She had no idea as to what they were, or what they were doing, but they appeared to be having fun!

Suddenly, she heard a voice!  A familiar voice! He was calling her name! She stood motionless as a man emerged from behind her, laughing. He asked if she was having fun, and she looked at him rather puzzled. She then realized that not only was this place new and exciting, it was meant to be FUN! The man walked over, took her hand in his and said, “Come with Daddy, and we’ll take a little walk.”

As they strolled toward the shore, the ground beneath her felt very wet. Before she knew it, her toes were poking into what her daddy called “sand” and that the place filled with sand was called the “beach”. As waves gently tickled her feet, she slowly ventured into the water holding her daddy’s hand. He explained that the water was called the “ocean”. She splashed gleefully in the ocean’s warm waves that receded onto the beach. Yes, she thought, this is FUN!

As they walked back toward the beach, she looked up and watched as the creatures continued to circle above. He laughed again and explained to her that they were called “seagulls” and would she like to feed them before they went home. She giggled softly, and with her blue eyes beaming, she fed the creatures pieces of bread and watched as they ate every last bit. What FUN!

As she rode home, she drifted off to sleep and dreamed of this wonderful place to have FUN! A place called the “beach” that was made of “sand”; water was the “ocean”, and the creatures were “seagulls”.  Oh, how she looked forward to visiting this FUN place again and again.

And when this little girl is all grown up and has a child of her own, her daddy will take great delight in sharing with his grandchild the story of his daughter’s first visit to Dunedin Beach.

- Total nr. of readings: 1,157 Copyright © The author [2020] All Rights Reserved. This story may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the author except for personal use.