abecedarian a novice learning the rudiments of a subject, a beginner or amateur; a student; straightforward, simplified; in literature, a work arranged in order according to the alphabet, often ... [+]
I imagined diving under all that churning water to look for coins from faraway countries. My feet would be glued to the ground carrying the weight of one of those old-timey, metal spaceman-looking suits as I dug through the silt hoping to see expressionless profiles of dead monarchs etched into greening bronze.Standing on the wooden deck, I shifted my weight from one leg to the other. My dad either didn't notice or didn't acknowledge my nerves. While we would become old pros later in our lives, navigating the silence was new for us then. We'd never gone on vacation alone before. Mom had always