My Lighthouse

When the day darkens and gives way to night. When the storms roll in and the seas get rough. When I've lost my way. If I look hard enough, through the dark clouds, the waves and the sheets of rain falling overhead, I can see it. It shines through it all, a beacon of hope when all hope seems lost. A lighthouse. The lighthouse. My lighthouse. 

A tall pillar of strength when times are rough and I grow weak. I search for the light to guide me through the rough and stormy seas. Never once has it failed me. Whenever I've needed it, it's there, sure and reliable, to lead me back into calmer waters. 

When I feel weak, you are my lighthouse, strong enough for both of us, beaming your light to show me the way. When I feel lost and helpless, you are there to call me home, full of hope. When I feel cold and lonely, you are there, ready to take me into your warm embrace. Any feelings of loneliness melt away when I look up and see my lighthouse standing there. Never do I feel lonely, knowing that you are there, even if all I can see is your light to lead me home.

The Pirate & The Mermaid

First, I was all by myself. Just a lonely sea captain who's spent my life sailing the seven seas and exploring the world. The world had much to offer, yet I did not find much I truly loved. That was until the day I saw her. Till then, I hadn't had any reason to believe that her kind were anything but a legend. Nothing but a myth, they said. But she couldn't be a myth. There was no way. Not when she was sitting there, right in front of me.

Legend said their call was irresistibly alluring, their voice beautifully haunting. But she was neither singing nor calling out to me. Instead, she just sat there, high up on the rock, slowly, carefully combing her long, wavy dark her with a fork. Yet even though she hadn't noticed me, I had been enchanted by her nonetheless. Distracted enough by her beauty to crash my ship, albeit lightly, into a group of rocks nearby. At the loud crashing sound, she finally looked up a fraction, and it was then that I saw her dark, chocolate eyes, falling well and truly under her spell. Another minute passed before she finally saw me, at once looking back down again. I continued to stare at her, like a creep. I didn't want to scare her, but I just couldn't look away. I was too afraid that if I did, she'd be gone. Disappear, nowhere to be found. My breath caught in my throat as I saw her eyes rise, so she was gazing shyly at me from underneath her lashes.

"Hey, you there!" I called out. Embarrassed she looked away. "It's ok," I said, wincing at the desperation that had seeped through into my voice, "I won't hurt you. I promise. I only want to..." She jumped from the rock into the ocean. "Talk," I said hopelessly.

I inhaled deeply, the icy air burning my throat as I stepped toward the edge of my boat. In one swift motion, I climbed upon the rail of the boat, prepared to jump when she reappeared on the rock, combing her hair again, the only sign she'd moved at all the water droplets shining on her olive skin. This time, I squinted closer, noticing a pearl white flower tucked neatly behind one ear, bright and vivid against the backdrop of her jet black hair.  Not knowing how else I'll reach her, I breathe deep and take a lap down into the blue, watery depth below me.

I try to swim to her, but the current is too strong and I'm soon carried away. I gasp for breath as the waves begin to pull me underneath, into another world beneath the surface. Her world, I presume. Then, everything was still. I felt a warmth near my arm and looked over to see her floating effortlessly beside
me, a small smile on her face. I glanced down to confirm my suspicions, and sure enough there was her tail, beautiful and colourful, glistening in the light of the sun. She smiled at me again, leaning close to whisper sweet nothings into my ear. "It's alright," she said, her soft voice resembling the pretty tinkling of a bell. I jumped only because it was not what I expected her to say. "I've got you."
"You've got me," I said, my words mostly incoherent for the water gurgling into my mouth as I try to speak. "You're my angel," I said, the delirium  starting to set in  as I lost consciousness.
"Ssh," she said, her voice soothing, like the hushed voice of a mother, soothing her baby to sleep. "Don't try to speak. I'll get you home."
Yes, I thought, please, take me home with you.
"Ssh, my sweet sailor. It's alright. Your safe now."
"I'm a captain," I tried to say.
"Oh," she said wistfully, her voice, unlike mine, not incoherent at all. "I've always wanted to meet a sailor. I've met many in my time, but none like you. You are one of a kind, my Darling." At that moment, I wanted to melt into her arms as a warm tingling spread throughout my body, causing a shiver to run down my spine.

"Captain," she asked, when we were back above the surface, both of us seated on her rock. Her eyes never once left mine, and I couldn't look away. But I didn't care.
"Jackie," I said softly, half in a daze, "call me Jackie."
"Jackie," she said, and I shivered at the beauty of my name coming from her mouth. "Do you believe in love at first sight?"
"I don't know. I've never been in love before."
"Only that we've known each other barely a day, yet, I think I love you."
"Really?" I asked, blinking, not believing the words I was hearing.
"Yes," she said, equally wistful. Her soft, smooth finger hooked itself beneath my chin and pulled me closer. I closed my eyes as she guided my lips toward hers and pressed them gently together, just as the sun took it's final peep out over the ocean for the day.

Living In A Rainbow

From my post, high up here, I can see the world. Lush green, grassy hills that stretch on for ages, and the ocean far beyond that, a bright, yet deep blue that sparkles magically as the light hits it. Above me, there are clouds, a soft, calm, smokey grey spread across an endless expanse of breathtaking cornflower blue.

Where I sit, way up high, there's quite a chill in the air. But not that awful winter chill that is so cold it hurts when you touch something. No. This chill is like the cool breeze on a warm summer's day. One that, when you've been out in the heat of the day, is overwhelmingly pleasant to experience. Yet, the cool air still sends shivers down my spine.

The colours surrounding me are so vividly beautiful. So bright they're almost blinding. The blue of the sky above and the sea below. The green of the grass, the hills and the trees. The dazzling yellow of the sun. The vibrant red of a bird flying by. The flowers, a deep shade of bright indigo, that from this great height, look like tiny little speckles of colour. The striking orange of a fire, blazing strong in a forest clearing.

This is my life, in the cool, refreshing bubble that is my perch high above the world, surrounded by a splendid array of vibrant colours. Yes, this is my life, and a lucky one at that. My life. Living in a rainbow.

Escape

She looked around her, but everything she saw was a blur. None of it made sense. It was all just one big rainbow of colours, all bleeding into one another. Then, the world began to spin. Slowly at first before picking up speed. Faster and faster it went until the already blurred world became hazier still. There was sounds; shouting, screams of terror and squeals of delight, all at once. A blur of overwhelming noise and confusion. Like that merry go round at the playground when you've ridden it one time too many. She wanted the world to stop. She wanted to get off. 

Yet, like everyone else in the world, she was stuck on this crazy ride called life. But in the few moments the world stopped spinning and she was able to look at the people around her, she felt the worst of all. It didn't seem like anyone else's world was spinning. No one else looked as green as she, the child who'd ridden the merry go round too fast and too much. Everyone else was still, almost like they were on a merry go round that was a tenth of the speed of hers. So much slower it seemed they were not moving at all, or at the pace of the slowest snail on Earth at the very least. Yet, they were all moving too. 

And then, she looked up. Up at the sky over their heads. The sky that, but for a few fluffy white clouds, was not moving at all. The sky, that unlike everything else, was still.  The sky that made her smile. Because, even if nothing else made sense. Even if everything else was a huge, confusing, overwhelming blur, she still had the sky. Even if they could take everything else and turn it all into one big, blurry mess, they couldn't take the sky. 

So she lay back and stared up at the sky, basking in the beauty and peace of it's stillness and the solace it brought her. Still, around her, the world continued to spin, though she didn't seem to notice as much anymore.

She closed her eyes, the image of the sky and clouds overhead etched in her mind. It happened both quickly and in slow motion. One moment, she could feel the cool wood beneath her back, the next, the sensation had gone, and she was floating. Floating upward, like she was in an indoor skydiving chamber, or an anti-gravity thing. In any case, she moved slowly, like a feather being carried gently by the breeze. And so she floated up toward the sky. Away from the confusing, blurry mess that was her spinning world. Up she floated, and away. Away to the sky. Away to an escape. To freedom. 

In My Dreams

I remember it feeling like the world had ended when you were stolen away. I remember feeling like it would never be the same again. The world, all of a sudden, had gone dark. Pitch black like the lights on a stage when the show's over.

But then, light appeared to illuminate the way and suddenly, I could see again. You were gone, and that hurt, sometimes it still does, but the world wasn't ending. Not anymore. At least, not for now. No. Instead, the world had just... Stopped. For a while. And then, strangely, the world just continued. It resumed, like nothing had happened. Like it, and me, had not just sustained a huge loss. Like you hadn't gone at all.

Sometimes, I'd forget, then, I remembered again. It'd hit me like a slap in the face. I could almost see you and your sweet face, smiling back at me. I could almost feel you beside me, a feeling I was afraid I'd forget. And sometimes I did, but when I remembered, it didn't hurt as much as it once would have.

Then, there's now. Finally, the world was starting to feel normal again. Until I got a cold, hard slap in the face, so painful it started raining from my eyes. The rain brought with it memories of you that it seemed I'd forgotten, and suddenly, I'd been catapulted back in time, if only for a moment.

And now, it's the end of the world again, and there you are. You've come back to me, just like I always hoped you would. But, it's different now. Because it's not dark anymore. Because this time, there's a light surrounding you and me. You're holding me closer than I can ever remember being held before. Can we just stay like this now, until it really is the end of the world? Cause you've finally come back to me. In my dreams.

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Inspired by the incredible Kate Miller-Heidke's 'Last Day On Earth'