Drabble Wednesday: Contemplation

Today’s Drabble Wednesday gets a little Zen…

Sailing

I stand on creaking, swaying planks of wood fashioned into a worthy vessel, gazing beyond the edge of the world. Across the liquid horizon, upon the tranquil, yet undulating, surface of the sea. So peaceful, so calm, reflecting the sweet blue sky, whilst harbouring its own hint of emerald green.

On days like this it is my mistress, my true love. We are one.

Even so, I give all respect to the coiling fury beneath, with its bones of lovers past. Turn your back, become complacent, and the ferocity will strike.

Still, I’d not give it up, not for anything.

~*~

The Mountain

Standing solid within the scope of time, a stalwart backbone of primeval earth, this mountain stretched to converse with the sky. It cast its shadow over the village, and generations of people took comfort in its presence. In turn it had played god, protector, inspiration, and obstacle.

In the winter it isolated, snows often blocking the pass and road that led to the next kingdom. In summer it provided, the slopes giving fertility to fields and harvests, its trees yielding fruit, nuts, or wood stockpiled for the cold weather.

Standing strong despite time’s passage, the mountain would outlast them all.

~*~

Starlight

Stars

Dots on the black canvas, illuminated frippery, adorning the universe. We stare—in awe, seeking knowledge, simply to idle away the hours. They are an eternal muse, imprinted, indelibly part of humanity’s eons.

What are they, truly?

A touch of things unknown, alien light reflected from another existent past, a farewell and hello from faraway places. They are a call to frontiers beyond, and memories we’ll never know, time travel held in celestial particles.

They are the beacons in the darkest night, whispering we are part of a universal something.

Where would our wishes go, but to the stars?

© A. F. Stewart 2016 All Rights Reserved

Drabble Wednesday: Strange Travels

We embark on a journey today on Drabble Wednesday, a trek through worlds sublime, and stories short…

Bon Voyage

I heard the gulls squawking, and the sound of crashing waves as the ocean rolled past the day into twilight. The last vestige of sun scattered through the gathered clouds, glinting sparkles off the water. In the company of this grand sea, I remembered better days, sorted memories like photos in a forgotten album; scenes of picnics at the beach, sunset walks, laughing children.

The reminiscences helped. They distracted from the cold, from the water that invaded my nose, my mouth, my lungs. Then I shut my eyes as I choked my final breath and sank beneath the ocean’s surface. 

The Morning

He settled on the grassy hillside and removed a hard biscuit from his rucksack. He chewed the tough bread—his only breakfast—and watched the sun rise above the fog shrouded mountains he left behind. Wondrous colours diffused the sky, a melange of titian and burnt umber, brushed with blush, that spread across a heavenly field of sapphire blue.

The old tree still stood in the meadows beyond the mountains and he remembered the day he carved his initials, and Ellen’s, in the bark. The day he first kissed her. She was gone now, and he could no longer stay.

Rendezvous

Alice waited on the train platform, her carpetbags packed with her belongings. She clutched her ticket, wondering for the umpteenth time if she was a fool. Risking it all for love, for Avery, a man with twinkling hazel eyes and promises of marriage. Her father would never take her back, never forgive her shunning the husband he picked out in favour of a gentleman he considered a wastrel.

She checked her small pocket watch again. What would she do if he didn’t show?

“I’m not that late, am I?”

Alice spun, greeted by his smile and a matching train ticket.