Back in the early ’70s, my explorations of philosophy in college led me to wrestling with huge questions about life, the universe, and everything. I was fortunate to be studying at a university campus located near the ocean, so I found myself often taking my philosophical wrestling matches with me for long walks on the beach.

My questioning mind began to question the questions, and even questioning the process of questioning the questions. One day I had an Aha! moment.

I suddenly realized that the ocean which was greeting me with an endless series of waves, approaching and receding, had been greeting other people in the same way since the time of Julius Caesar and even long before that. Suddenly, I felt a bond with the people of history, particularly those who had also brought their questions down to the beach.

So when I was listening to Living on Earth (Public Radio’s Environmental News Magazine) and heard An Interview with the Ocean, it lit up memories of those many times I walked the beach, listening to the ocean’s commentary on my questions. This piece includes a poem by Mary Oliver as well as another poem it inspired.

If you follow the above link to the interview, you will find both a text and an audio version of that 8 minute program.

John F. Williams