"I'm an ornithologist"
is my favorite lie to tell
the dawn-seeking, barefoot purists
who daily upon the dunes' edge dwell.


I hold my binoculars out -
such a Jetsonian olive branch -
they smile, nod, flit along their route
and never spy that which would make them blanch.


I am not quite a lifeguard; but I
make sure to always work the dawn patrol.
First body's sight gives me goosebumps as I
shudder to see how soft through the waves they roll.