Desert Island

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I opened my eyes. Where was I? The sound of roaring waves resonated throughout my ear canal. Everywhere I touched, I could feel small grains sticking to the palms of my hand, and back, sticking to any exposed skin. Every grain of sand was glowing, like a memory. They stuck with me forever, and I never forgot about them. But once in awhile there was a piece of gravel, which was painful, and uncomfortable to remove. Once it was gone, it was the best feeling in the world. I sighed, looking up at the blue sky.

How did I end up on this lonely island? It was just a lump of land sticking out from the ocean, with a tree in the middle of it -- your stereotypical desert island. I turned around to face the tree, and scanned the plant up and down. It had carvings on the bark.

“C squared is equal to A squared plus B squared?” I raised an eyebrow, as I read one of the carvings out loud.

Most of them were just mathematical formulae, and theories in chemistry. It was probably my knowledge, which grew every time I learnt something new.

I walked around the tree, which stirred a few minutes after I did a full circle around it. It was a seagull.

“Who are you?” I asked, looking up at the seagull, who seemed to be staring down at me.

“Someone who isn’t relevant,” it said, in an oddly familiar voice.

I raised an eyebrow and sat under the tree. I had no idea what it was. Sure, it was a seagull, but what did it represent? Soon another one sat on down next to it, then another one, until a whole crowd of seagulls were on the palm tree.

Soon, one lone seagull, one that was different from the others, sat next to me. “Hello, why aren’t you sitting on the tree?” I asked, looking down at the lone seagull.

It looked tired, but still happy. Another seagull just like it landed next to it, looking up at me as well. “Because I went through all of those memories with you. It is my duty to share the sorrows, and happiness with you,” they said in unison, their feet sinking into the sand below them. I then looked up at the birds on the tree.

“Who are they?” I asked, pointing at the birds.

“People in your life who you remember, but not in your most important memories. They are just friends, and stay on the tree of knowledge,” they explained, glancing up at the tree, and looking back at me again.

That’s when the realization struck me -- they were my parents, and the ones on the tree were my friends. This island was just a small part of my brain, the vast oceans were my subconscious, waiting to be explored.

“I see..” 

I understand everything now.

The Bridge

          “Remember that bridge where we met? The one at the park?” I asked Leah.

          “I can’t believe that you even have to ask me that question; of course I remember it,” she replied.

          “Didn’t you ever wonder what happened to the park? Why it closed?” I asked

          “Well yeah, but I mean I’m sure it had its reasons,” she answered.

          “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I replied to her in a quiet voice. About half an hour later Leah blurted out, “Do you think it would be alright if we went to the park?”

          “ Well yeah, but I mean, maybe you’re right, maybe there was a reason for the park to close,” I answered.

          “ Come on, I bet it’s not that bad,” she said as she got up. I got up after her and we left the house.

          We had walked for about five minutes when we finally reached the park. As we entered the park, we saw the bridge right ahead of us.

          “Look! That’s it! That’s the bridge!” She said in excitement. But something was different. The park wasn’t like it used to be. It seemed more like some kind of enchanted forest to me. The sound of the chirping birds, the water running under the bridge, the fresh air. I didn’t understand why the park was closed. Nothing seemed wrong with it.

          “ This place has not changed one bit,” Leah said to me. We only spent about ten minutes in the park.

          The next day at school Leah came up to me and asked, “Can we work on our project in the park today?”

          I stood silent for a few seconds, trying to understand what made her change her mind about the park, and then I answered, “Sure.”

          When the school bell rang, I went straight to my car and started to drive. When I got to the park, Leah was already there waiting with a big smile on her face. I got out of my car and walked into the park with Leah. The first thing that I saw as I walked in was the bridge, but something was different, I just didn’t know what. I stood by the entrance trying to figure it out. The bridge that I knew brought Leah and I together for a reason; it gave us memories. But all of those memories disappeared when the bridge collapsed.

Madidi. "The Old Bridge, Tollymore Forest Park." Panoramio. N.p., 25 July 2008. Web. 09 Dec. 2013.