Homesong

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The Blubbery Seal

I’m standing at the harbour feeling the -4 chill, while a curious animal bobs up very close by and gives me the stare.

The Blubbery Seal is in her environment, swimming, warm and cosy in the sea water, which will have changed temperature, but a lot less than the air in which I’m standing.

But I’m a human being. We’ve been adapting to circumstances for a long, long time. So, I’m kind of comfortable feeling cold, in the knowledge that I can soon warm up by the radiator at home. Or start running. Or buy a warmer coat.

It’s a problem to solve. It’s also a solvable problem.

But that doesn’t stop me feeling a little bit jealous of that seal, living instinctively in the moment, with just the right equipment built-in to cope right now.

So I say “hello” to the seal. She bobs back at me, and then, oh so gracefully, glides into the deep.

And I walk away before I’m frozen to the spot.