“What’s an old sailor’s favorite letter of the alphabet?” I ask my granddaughter.

“ARRRRGGH!” She replies and we both giggle.

I feel a bit of the seafarer in me this October. 
“ARRRRGH!”  I echo the sentiments of salty sailors of old, though my feet never leave dry land.

“Come set sail with me. Do ‘ya feel the change in the wind?” I ask. 
“Do you feel the shift in the seasons?”

“Hey, wait a minute,” you interrupt my monologue. 
“You’re nothing but a landlubber, when your feet never leave land. 
You’ve missed a very important part of your title…”   

THE SEA

the salt waters that cover the greater part of the earth’s surface.

“Aye, but let me explain myself… 

I sail along autumn sidewalks, instead of on high seas. 
Where windswept gold attends my steps with leafy crumble.

Leaden clouds tumble and roll overhead, casting on and off cold shadows over me.

Winds fill the tops of living masts, instead of sails of white.
Tree tops bend and sway, releasing once emerald leaves, now turned to brilliant gems: 
ruby reds, crimson crisps, fiery sunset oranges. 

Instead of salty spray across my face, showers of gold fall from above, spreading nature’s gold doubloon carpet before me.
Here lie the richest treasures, crunching beneath my feet. 

Treasures without price!
ARRRRGH! 
Feel the wind. Smell the change. Set sight on new horizons.
One needs only to steal a few precious moments to see land’s imitation of sea.
Come, set sail with me, into ventures yet unseen.

Navigate the changing tides. 
What brilliant bounty lies ahead?