Red Hull At Rest

About this piece

A red dinghy rests between gray inflatable boats, its yellow interior holding worn benches, wooden oars, and a long-handled brush. Daylight brings out chipped paint and scuffed surfaces, while the hull’s diagonal placement leads the eye from the dock toward the raised outboard motor. Dark, rippling reflections lend stillness to this closely framed arrangement of working boats.

The story

Late June light settles across the red hull and its weathered seats. An oar lies beside the brush, each handle tracing a line through the small boat’s crowded interior. Ropes loop over the bow, and a coiled hose rests on the dock above. In the narrow water between the boats, reflections loosen into wavering strips of gray and red. Everything waits within reach.