Writtings Of a Tourtred Mind.
Andrew’s Safe Place
It seems as if life has begun to give me something I have never really had. Like I am standing on a mountain top looking out over the ocean at a small cloud out upon the horizon, Moment by moment this tiny speck of a cloud grows. I have seen this before. Only now I know what it is. I gather my things and start to head for higher ground. I take only the things I can not live without and a few people if they want to go or chose to believe my tale. You see when I was but a child I lived thru on of the most horrifying experiences that anyone could imagine. It all started with a tiny speck of a cloud off on the horizon.
I can’t quite remember the date but I know I was no more the six or seven when the cloud first showed up. We were standing on the beach looking out as the whales were dancing thru the water. I just happened to see the cloud when one of the orca burst thru the water its beautiful skin flashing in the pre-dusk light. As the orca slid back into the water is when I saw it, an innocent cloud off in the sky. We walked farther and farther along the beach following the whales. I was with my best friend Andrew, and we were paying no attention to time or anything else except the orca. After a few hours I noticed that the Sky was beginning to take on the shade of pale purple what comes before a storm. I also noticed we had wandered farther away from everyone else then we had intended. I suggested that we go back but Andrew said that he knew of a place that lead up to the boardwalk a few more yards down the road and we could catch a bus there and make it back in less time then if we started back down the beach. Seeing as how my feet and legs were hurting I agreed that we should take this way then.
The rain started before we were even halfway to where he said the trail was. The rain was pounding the sand and the rocks as if it was trying to literally wash them away in to the ocean. I remember that Andrew has hold of my sleeve to try and keep me from lagging behind and to make sure I would not get swept away into the ocean by the wind or the massive amount of water that was cascading down the rocks. He was yelling over the wind that there was a place we could stop for a bit just up head. When we got there it was amazingly dry. A little cave in the side of the cliff, Andrew was saying that we should wait here until the rain slowed down a bit and try to warm up. I guess you can say I was lucky that Andrew was there.
Even though he was only thirteen he knew how to handle himself in nature. Andrew loved to hunt and hike. Camping was one of his favorite things to do. I just huddled in the far back of the little cave and shivered, while he set about making a fire with his ever present Zippo lighter and some drift wood that was scattered around the floor. Soon the little cave was warm. Andrew went about making sure the fire would not jump out of the little hole he dug in the soft sand on the floor while I just leaned back and rested against the stone. I guess I fell asleep I don’t know how long I was out but when I woke up it was because the earth its self was rumbling. Not and earthquake, more like 500 big trucks just driving over your head. It was one of the most terrifying moments of my life.
Andrew was silhouetted in the opening by a weird kind of pink grey light. His face was a mask of terror and fear. Then he was gone. Just like that no noise no nothing just gone. I blinked and wondered where he could have gone so fast when I noticed that the ground had stopped shaking and the weird light was moving farther back into the cave. I curled into a little ball in the corner I was in and just closed my eyes. It wasn’t until I opened them again that I realized I had fallen asleep again. I thought that maybe my seeing Andrew disappear was just a dream and that what woke me up was him shaking me to tell me that he was going to get our parents and to stay here.
After about two hours I decided that if that were true then he would have to be back by now. I slowly crawled to the front of the cave and peered out over the beach. What I saw was nothing short of absolute destruction and death. All across the beach were the beautiful orca we had been following the day before. Spread out upon the rocks and the sand were pools of blood coloring the landscape. The sky was a mix of oranges, reds and blues. There was an intense smell of smoke and fire. I hurriedly crawled out of the little cave and ran towards the path that Andrew had told me about.
When I made it up onto the boardwalk what I saw made me want to run back down to the beach and crawl back into the cave. The city was gone. Not burning. Just plain gone. It looked like someone had just scooped it out of the earth and walked away with it. There were a few people running around or just sitting on the ground staring at the devastation. Not more the 50 people survived that day.
It wasn’t until years later I found out what happened to that little town. Apparently someone had released something that no one could control; and the military felt it was best to remove the whole problem. The reason I am telling you about this is because I saw it again. The tiny little cloud off on the horizon, I also saw the orca dancing thru the water today. Exactly like that day. So I have decided to go back to my little cave. Where I have stockpiled everything I need to survive. I bought the beach land about two years ago. I had a feeling I may need Andrew’s safe place again sometime. Your more then welcome to join me. Just know this. Once I close the door it won’t reopen for some time. Not until after the rumbling stops and the smells clear. However you are welcome to leave at any time, just not thru the door to the beach. I don’t think I could handle seeing that twice in a lifetime.
Melissa LaPlante
It seems as if life has begun to give me something I have never really had. Like I am standing on a mountain top looking out over the ocean at a small cloud out upon the horizon, Moment by moment this tiny speck of a cloud grows. I have seen this before. Only now I know what it is. I gather my things and start to head for higher ground. I take only the things I can not live without and a few people if they want to go or chose to believe my tale. You see when I was but a child I lived thru on of the most horrifying experiences that anyone could imagine. It all started with a tiny speck of a cloud off on the horizon.
I can’t quite remember the date but I know I was no more the six or seven when the cloud first showed up. We were standing on the beach looking out as the whales were dancing thru the water. I just happened to see the cloud when one of the orca burst thru the water its beautiful skin flashing in the pre-dusk light. As the orca slid back into the water is when I saw it, an innocent cloud off in the sky. We walked farther and farther along the beach following the whales. I was with my best friend Andrew, and we were paying no attention to time or anything else except the orca. After a few hours I noticed that the Sky was beginning to take on the shade of pale purple what comes before a storm. I also noticed we had wandered farther away from everyone else then we had intended. I suggested that we go back but Andrew said that he knew of a place that lead up to the boardwalk a few more yards down the road and we could catch a bus there and make it back in less time then if we started back down the beach. Seeing as how my feet and legs were hurting I agreed that we should take this way then.
The rain started before we were even halfway to where he said the trail was. The rain was pounding the sand and the rocks as if it was trying to literally wash them away in to the ocean. I remember that Andrew has hold of my sleeve to try and keep me from lagging behind and to make sure I would not get swept away into the ocean by the wind or the massive amount of water that was cascading down the rocks. He was yelling over the wind that there was a place we could stop for a bit just up head. When we got there it was amazingly dry. A little cave in the side of the cliff, Andrew was saying that we should wait here until the rain slowed down a bit and try to warm up. I guess you can say I was lucky that Andrew was there.
Even though he was only thirteen he knew how to handle himself in nature. Andrew loved to hunt and hike. Camping was one of his favorite things to do. I just huddled in the far back of the little cave and shivered, while he set about making a fire with his ever present Zippo lighter and some drift wood that was scattered around the floor. Soon the little cave was warm. Andrew went about making sure the fire would not jump out of the little hole he dug in the soft sand on the floor while I just leaned back and rested against the stone. I guess I fell asleep I don’t know how long I was out but when I woke up it was because the earth its self was rumbling. Not and earthquake, more like 500 big trucks just driving over your head. It was one of the most terrifying moments of my life.
Andrew was silhouetted in the opening by a weird kind of pink grey light. His face was a mask of terror and fear. Then he was gone. Just like that no noise no nothing just gone. I blinked and wondered where he could have gone so fast when I noticed that the ground had stopped shaking and the weird light was moving farther back into the cave. I curled into a little ball in the corner I was in and just closed my eyes. It wasn’t until I opened them again that I realized I had fallen asleep again. I thought that maybe my seeing Andrew disappear was just a dream and that what woke me up was him shaking me to tell me that he was going to get our parents and to stay here.
After about two hours I decided that if that were true then he would have to be back by now. I slowly crawled to the front of the cave and peered out over the beach. What I saw was nothing short of absolute destruction and death. All across the beach were the beautiful orca we had been following the day before. Spread out upon the rocks and the sand were pools of blood coloring the landscape. The sky was a mix of oranges, reds and blues. There was an intense smell of smoke and fire. I hurriedly crawled out of the little cave and ran towards the path that Andrew had told me about.
When I made it up onto the boardwalk what I saw made me want to run back down to the beach and crawl back into the cave. The city was gone. Not burning. Just plain gone. It looked like someone had just scooped it out of the earth and walked away with it. There were a few people running around or just sitting on the ground staring at the devastation. Not more the 50 people survived that day.
It wasn’t until years later I found out what happened to that little town. Apparently someone had released something that no one could control; and the military felt it was best to remove the whole problem. The reason I am telling you about this is because I saw it again. The tiny little cloud off on the horizon, I also saw the orca dancing thru the water today. Exactly like that day. So I have decided to go back to my little cave. Where I have stockpiled everything I need to survive. I bought the beach land about two years ago. I had a feeling I may need Andrew’s safe place again sometime. Your more then welcome to join me. Just know this. Once I close the door it won’t reopen for some time. Not until after the rumbling stops and the smells clear. However you are welcome to leave at any time, just not thru the door to the beach. I don’t think I could handle seeing that twice in a lifetime.
Melissa LaPlante