People have constantly been stimulated by the ocean and the sounds of the waters on the shore, it has a distant sound, and it seems that they can hear the other parts of the world and the thoughts of other people in other nations. The ocean also has a surreal feeling, the waters seem to touch the surfaces of people as if they can hear something, and there is also a peace that overwhelms them when they see a body of water. When I’m along a beach, there are imaginary places that I start to see; areas that are part of the surreal world come into my feelings of towers in the middle of the ocean, islands where elusive priests lived, or ruins of a small ocean city near the shore, also with ruins along the cliffs of the coast. Once it can be imagined that people lived there, they could come to live there again. Strange footprints along the sand could indicate a peculiar creature, or an imagined jellyfish suggests an underwater structure; anything is possible when thinking about the oceans.
The sounds of an ocean, the incoming waves, children playing in the distance, people are talking, the sounds of sea birds, and the wind. These are inspirations to create stories or characters. Think about the visual aesthetic of water left on the shore by the tides or pools of water among the rocks even when sunlight hits the shallow ocean areas; what kinds of words can that indicate? A poem could be written when observing the clear deep waters, seemingly green and blue. Is anything else possible; imagine words that strike the cords of feelings, convey memories and emotions, words that could be used so that readers of the poem could have the same feelings as if they were the poet? Conjure a strange city full of color among lava rocks and shallow pools of water that is a transparent dome submerged under the sea.
Water is a transparent liquid when it’s not combined with impurities; there is a feeling of pure, clear water that is stimulating; think about the relationship of things like grass or glass; there is an ethereal beauty, something that can’t be grasped, the beauty of observing something through a transparent object. This is a symbol of opening to see all things through glass walls, the broad oceans, keeping the mind as far-encompassing as the ocean where there are no limitations, no social constrictions, and all things accepted. Water has no particular shape; it can take many forms; thought is just like water; it has no specific condition; it can fit into any receptacle like the human brain. Imagine if the conception was like water and you could find it in glass vases of various shapes and colors. Water is a metaphor for thought. It can be pure, displaying the sea life beneath, or life in a stream, river, or pond. Waters could be muddied or polluted, and the mind does the same, yet muddied waters give much energy to a small echo system, and lotuses will only grow from the muddied waters. It seems there is always a paradox.
Water is that paradox that gives life and takes it away. In the womb, the child born later is enveloped in what is water. Life in our world developed in water. Tsunamis and monsoons have killed people, but communities have rebuilt after these disasters. They have developed better buildings and safer roads.
When light from the sun touches meandering waves or powerful crashing waves, there are feelings of danger and urgency, yet the waves could take on other forms. The ocean can convey tranquility that seems to rest the inner soul. The sea has a translucency where the light touches it. In other parts, it’s almost opaque, creating beautiful contrasts that can build dreams for the imagination.
The sound of water communicates a strange, mesmerizing feeling; think about the crashing sound of the seashore, the ebbing of water against a stone barrier, or the running of water over rocks in a stream.
When it rained, I saw that the rainwater that came down from the drain onto a small garden formed a pool of water that added to a microenvironment with moss, small plants, rocks, sand, and soil; thus, the waters from the rain had created a small, temporary pond, yet it existed, imparting a comforting feeling.
I’ve thought about spheres of water or raindrops, as they are conventionally called, collecting on a window during the rain and looking out of that same window and seeing the yard with a garden and seeing that there is something tranquil and safe.
There is warmth from the sound of the rain, waterfalls, waves coming to shore, and the quiet sounds of a stream.
Robert J. Matsunaga
