Intellectually, I understand what causes low tides to occur, but it still feels supremely weird to see how far ocean water can retreat before eventually, steadily pouring back in to where it once was. Watching an entire ecosystem temporarily morph into something different, being able to suddenly walk across a bay, or stroll to an island, it just seems so strange to me, like it shouldn’t be possible but there it is.
Maybe I was a Neanderthal in a past life and these ordinary aspects of nature still seem like magic. Whatever it is, I’m happy that I live close enough to the ocean that I can go and stare gap-jawed when the tide goes out.
