Experienceing a Storm on the Seas

It was a calm, motionless day. The gentle waves shimmered under the rising sun, as if snoozing in their liquid clothes. They rolled up to the pristine beach with its curtained cove, then shuddered and drizzled their sea spray onto the pitted sandy surface. The occasional call of a seagull echoed in the air, like a conversation in the sky. Smiling to myself, I inhaled the crisp air that energised my being as I leaned lazily against the railing of my boat, my floating residence. I slowly lowered myself down into my cosy cabin, where I often spent many hours. I grabbed my deck chair and crawled back up onto the glistening deck.

Sinking down into my chair, shutting my eyes, I listened to the rhythmic percussion of the waves. Each wave had its own sound that echoed over the sea like a gentle melody, as if providing the soundtrack for a chorus of prancing white horses against an eternal blue horizon. I stared towards the distant land, reflecting briefly on the life I’d left behind, reassured by my new found solitude. This was where I was meant to be: away from the noise, the world, my past. It was my home. I awoke to the beating of the waves as they loudly slapped against my boat. The air seemed cooler and the breeze stronger. I fixed my eyes on the horizon, now a dark silver line. I got to my feet and shuffled along the deck. Unfurling the main sail, the boat swung its nose around like an arrow stubbornly pointing the way towards land - and safety.

The boat suddenly started rocking side to side like a pendulum. Dirty clouds began to blanket the midday sky and shadows quickly swallowed the last shimmer of light. Darkness prevailed as the clouds thickened and thunder growled in the distance like the revving of an engine. The seagulls had all but gone now, their calls barely a whisper. I prepared myself for the inevitable.

The wind picked up its tempo and stirred the waves into transcendent, towering mountains which crashed down hard. Sloshing from its imprisoned depths, the swell stirred up. Suddenly, raindrops hurled like tiny stones as the sea hissed, lashed and threw the waves up and down, orchestrating their boisterous beat. Frantically, I pulled out my weather-beaten oars to get ahead of the raging clouds that were creeping up, chasing me, but the oars were no good. It was only a matter of minutes until the cumulus clouds churned and grew, shrouding the brewing sea, casting a shadow over me, tossing my boat into the rising swell. I gripped onto the sail with my naked fingers as the storm exerted its own icy grip on my helpless boat. The furious waters splashed over the deck drenching me, head to toe. The storm surge spun my boat sideways. I now grabbed a pole, anything. It was difficult to hold on. In desperation, I looked up, mesmerised by the power over head. I saw the shapes of angry faces where the sun should have been, staring down at me. Like memories of my past, they distracted me from the battle I was immersed in - but only for a moment. The storm raged on, roaring with anger, defeating me with all its strength. The liquid king had proven his superiority. He bellowed once more and was still, his display of might over.

The scorching sun warmed my head and woke me from my slumber. My eyes tried to open but the light that shone like a torch blinded me. I felt the sodden floor of my boat as I lay uneasily in my damp clothes. My mind raced back to the night before, the hour I cheated death. I heaved myself up and, to my relief, the blue velvet blanket lay silent and still, sleeping dreamily again.