At the Aquarium

The orange sea star rests
on the docent’s underwater hand.
“A sea star can regenerate lost arms.
This is useful if it’s threatened
by an enemy.”

Tentative, a young boy strokes it
with two fingers.

“It can drop an arm, get away
and grow a new arm.
Many marine creatures—”

“My dad is in the marines,”
the boy interrupts.
​
I walk outside,
embed my feet in safe sand,
scan the horizon for dolphins.

First published in Crab Creek Review 2016