Waves That Kiss the Shore Goodbye
Where Goodbyes Disappear into the Tide
The sea doesn’t shout
when it says farewell.
It whispers,
soft and slow,
as waves curl around the ankles
of a shoreline already letting go.
Every morning,
they arrive
like lovers returning
from dreams—
touching sand with reverence,
only to leave again
without promise or apology.
I used to stand there,
where water met earth,
pretending it was you.
Each wave,
your hand brushing mine.
Each retreat,
the echo of your voice
saying goodbye
one more time.
Isn’t it strange
how we grieve in loops?
Like tides returning
to the same wound,
carving loss
into smoother stone.
Never healed—
just weathered.
You left quietly.
No slammed door,
no raised voice—
just distance
growing like mist
between words
we never spoke aloud.
And now,
I come to this shore
to remember
what forgetting feels like.
The salt air tastes like
things we meant to say.
The gulls overhead
laugh like they know
how foolish we were
to think forever
meant “always.”
There’s peace here, too.
Not in holding on,
but in letting go—
the same way the ocean does,
again
and again.
Because waves don’t grieve
for the sand they lose.
They return anyway—
not to possess,
but to touch
what they’ll never keep.
And maybe that’s love.
The kind that comes back,
even if
just to say
goodbye
a little more gently
each time.
About the Creator
Rahul Sanaodwala
Hi, I’m the Founder of the StriWears.com, Poet and a Passionate Writer with a Love for Learning and Sharing Knowledge across a Variety of Topics.
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Comments (1)
This description of the sea and the emotions it stirs is really powerful. It makes me think of how we often hold onto memories in a similar way to the shore holding onto the waves. Do you think there's a point where we should stop grieving in those loops and fully embrace the letting go, like the sea does so effortlessly? I also like how it compares love to the sea's touch. It's a gentle reminder that love can be about the connection, even if it's not a forever kind of thing. Have you ever experienced a love like that, where it keeps coming back in a bittersweet way?