Before the Flight

On the still waters off the Galle coast, on Saturday morning, two weathered poles stood their quiet vigil — remnants of a time when fishermen worked these shores at first light. A lone cormorant had claimed the higher perch, motionless against the pale sky.

I watched and waited. The sea lay glassy and silent, smoothed by a long exposure into something almost unreal. Then, without warning, it was gone — lifting into the grey with a slow, unhurried grace, as if the moment itself had finally exhaled.

Some departures are worth the wait.

1st September 2018

Galle, Sri Lanka.