Remembering Silence

A Story by Alexandra R

A short story about a short walk on the beach.

I heard my sister yelp and watched her cover her head with her arms as a flock of seagulls flew above us. “Don’t poop!” she yelled as she ran, trying to ensure that she would be safe from any goopy projectiles. My aunt and I laughed softly at her as we continued our nighttime walk down the beach. We had been at Lake Erie for about four days, but this was the first time I had been on the beach at night. It was peacefully quiet, the only sounds being the delicate crashing of the waves and the shifting of the sand beneath our feet. The silence was a welcome relief from beach days full of playful shouting and water splashing. Breathing in the slightly fishy air, I observed the full moon that hung patiently above the lake, as if it were waiting for the last of the sunlight to disappear. To speak, it seemed, would be irreverent. Trivial conversation would be an unwelcome interruption of the stillness that had engulfed the lake.

I turned away from the silver moon to watch as the last hints of red sky slipped away behind us. “I think it’s about time we head back to the house,” my aunt said as she motioned for us to make our way back down the beach. We walked again in silence, the warm wind tugging at our hair.