Bilge water is rough as she heads for stony shore
steeped in grey misty horizon.
Rock is more stable, she thought , than tossing water that threatens to topple me.
I will surely drown here and sink to the depths
As panic would ripple through me, were I to fall into the brink,
the edge of the unknown.
Sighting the shore, she claims as gift
While attempting to steer a rudderless craft in that direction.
What if she doesn’t make it? she ponders.
No time for doubt. Cast the goal. Go or die in the attempt.
Fate has a way of treating failures. Has her own game.
Rock is not necessarily the way to go. Inflexible, rigid, a solid landing.
But what of adventure? Risk?
Standing firm is needed yet,
but leaving safe haven is the only way to delve mystery of unknown
and rise to greater stance
more rooted in watered soil.
To be in the sea without anchor?
Point of return? a buoy?
To take bearings seems a lost cause too,
An unwise undertaking.
Tossed this way and that, unfocused
Thus she pondered deep in heart spaces
as the physical struggle to survive
and stay above water continued.
What is this need to live; this battle for safety?
What is really to fear in the murky depths?
Even in dying there are lessons; freeing lessons, no doubt.
Hanging on to the status quo is tensing pressure if out of fear it is maintained.
She was tired, losing strength. Emotionally wrought, she could hardly paddle anymore and lost headway quickly, going against the flow.
She was giving in, she thought, but the panic had ceased. She questioned her fate, given her best at controlling the situation, close to admitting defeat. She could not fight it forever.
She was beginning to accept her present impossibilities, deciding that the shore was not meant for her- yet
Elusive in gray, it was never there.
Here in the fray was where life was. All she had to do was discover the passion in it.
All who had left her had come to some momentous moment; To join whole heartedly in the flowing tides. The dance.
The boat was near full of water. Wind and waves were against her. Yet , she was not against herself as when she first became aware of her lot. It was with a strength and a will that she finally dove into the waves of discovery, somehow knowing the death she fought against would not be as she expected; the safety she sought to hold was not the healthiest of goals.
As she began to swim through the foamy sea, she had no clear sense of direction. Where this would bring her, but she had a sense of excitement now, acceptance that if she strove forward against that which she feared, that life would arise. She stopped fighting herself. Amazingly, the more inner peace she manifested., the calmer the sea became and the clearer the horizon.
Still tired, she kept swimming, motivated by the now visible shore, not of pure gray stone, but of soft sand, rock outcrops, lush greenery, blue skies: a land full of promise, a sign of reward.
And it was not that far away. The distance between the jump and this new shore was very short compared to the stone beach and her craft, when she was wrapped in veils of fear.
As the waves now aided her to the sandy haven, the trees whispered soft welcoming songs. All was serene, new and brimming with adventures to discover. She was enthusiastic to move forward now to life here. Although she had a sense now, that even this sojourn would be impermanent, she could accept it more easily, and hoped to be ready, less trapped by fear, for the next move in the dance of life.
642 words   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
| Members who added to this interactive story also contributed to these: |
<<-- Previous · Outline  · Recent Additions © Copyright 2025 eyestar~* (UN: 1starsong at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Gaby has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work within this interactive story. Poster accepts all responsibility, legal and otherwise, for the content uploaded, submitted to and posted on Writing.Com. |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
More by this author