Galapagos

Black lava, blue water and white, white sand -
a place of amazement,
not for the albatross dance or giant tortoises,
but for that moment when I
swung my leg over the side of a boat,
having first slithered into a wet suit - my new skin,
then jumped feet first into the deep Pacific
far from any recognizable land.
Forgetting fear and uncertainty
I met with penguins and sea lions,
schools of surgeon fish.
As the silent witness of
a lone reef shark glided below me,
I began my own evolution,
breathing in and out, in and out.