Shari Cohen created this book  about relationships.  The stories are delightfully diverse but have a common thread in that each is set in a background related to a body of water. Water has an almost universal appeal. Most people are relaxed by the sounds of waves, a brook, a gentle rain, the roar of a giant waterfall, even the passing of a thunderstorm.  These sounds, and the images that go with them, have an almost magical calming effect, allowing our minds to float free and feel a sense of harmony with nature and the world around us. The rhythm of moving water creates a mood for contemplation allowing us to put things together and understand ourselves better free of the distractions of everyday life. It is ironical that introspection is often the key to understanding other people.  We infer that others around us have the same feelings and needs, know the same sorrows and pains, by observing their behavior and comparing their feelings to our own. Only by understanding ourselves do we know what other people are going through. Reading is another way to discover meaning and relate to what other people are thinking and feeling.  

Shari Cohen's short stories in Rhythm of the Sea are that kind of reading. Think of how these stories could relate to you.