Salty Awakening

The air caresses my nose.
Heart thumping, adrenaline.
“Kona Johnson,” the speakers boom.
A horn pierces the constant crushing of the surf.
I paddle out.

The waves crash and crumble.
The churning current creates
chaos in the water.

Time travels and the horn bellows once more.
With it my heart is shattered.
Black balls of grief dance around inside me.

I slump up the beach, a seal in despair.
Encouragement and congrats flow in,
but do nothing to the blackness within.

My trance is suddenly broken by shouting.
I glance up, another loser.
Constant ridicule from his father is all he gets.
He begins to cry.

His grief lightens my darkness,
replacing it with sympathy and guilt.

by Kona Johnson
9th grade, Kahuku High and Intermediate School