Amber Rose and the Starfish

My daughter is visiting from out of state, and we determine early on that this day is“Beach Day.” We grab an old sheet, a couple of towels, the traditional plastic shovels, pail and a couple of plastic bags to put shells in. Piling the kids in the car we take off.
It’s a hot sunny day, but there’s enough of a breeze blowing to take the edge off the humidity.
Amber Rose is sporting a new blue bathing suit, which glistens in the sun and her hair hangs in pigtails down her back. She’s inquisitive and adventurous, being exposed to many things at home – including recently rapelling from her loft on the third floor of their new home (beware when she becomes a teenager). She is the daughter of two teachers, one being a science teacher, and is used to “strange” things and handling them. Once I opened their freezer to find 2 dead birds in Baggies – yuck – when I expected ice cream. She’s precocious and her vocabulary includes the scientific name for many things - butterflies, orchids, etc.
We decide to walk awhile and spot pelicans roosting on pilings extending out into the Gulf. She sees sandpipers skirting the waters edge and runs after them – then approaches a heron, which walks away, keeping a calculated distance between them. She becomes concerned with a pelican with an injured foot. It looks like an old wound, but we will report it if we can find someone.
The Gulf water is aqua in color and warm enough to feel almost like bath water. It is clear, and you can see shells in the sand below. Soon Amber Rose has her “collection” started. She and her cousin shufle their feet in the sand. they find a starfish – or “sun star,” (as they’re called when they have more then 5 legs). Soon there are two. She is ecstatic about this new found treasure, but unsure how she should hold it, and ends up gingerly taking hold of the very tip of one of it’s legs with two fingers. She reminds me of a sea nymph or water sprite with her bathing suit glistening in the sun and wet tendrils of hair clinging to her arm.