The North Sea At Night

When I look out at the North Sea at night, I can understand how people used to think the world was flat.  At night, the sea is black, so black that it looks like nothing.  The sand seems to fall away where it meets the water, and the edges of the ice floes still detectable by the light of the city hang in the nothingness like ghosts.  I had a headache all day yesterday and couldn't sleep last night, so I took a walk on the beach.  I had the feeling that I was the only one awake on the whole island and that the crunch of the sand beneath my feet was disrupting everyone else's dreams. 

I am afraid of being attacked by rabid seals.  This is a fear I was completely unaware of until last night.