Sea Change

Sea-change or seachange, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, means “a change wrought by the sea.”  The term originally appears in Shakespeare’s The Tempest in Ariel’s song “Full Fathom Five”.

In the bard’s verse, it’s used to describe a metamorphosis or alteration, a seemingly magical change brought about by the action of the sea.

Full fathom five thy father lies;
Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes;
Nothing of him that doth fade,
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.
Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell:
Ding-dong.
Hark! now I hear them — Ding-dong, bell.

Shakespeare

It’s rewarding to watch guests undergo their own seachange when they visit the Pointhouse. Shoulders drop, respirations slow and sleep deepens. Winter offers an extra quiet time for reflection and renewal.