When Two Worlds Coincide

By Dawn Brown

 

Have you ever walked beneath the sky at night when winter is at its height?  When the blackness that surrounds you is tinged with vibrant blue and the stars above glisten like gold dust in the moonlight.  You sit on a bench and admire the old oak in the distance.  Its branches sparkle with the frost that adorns them, resembling a blanket of diamonds.  An owl hoots from its perch in the tree, releasing an echo of bird song into the open air, oblivious or at least happy to ignore the cold.  As you inhale the dense night air, you look up into the sky.  Despite its elegance and beauty, you wish it would not rest so heavily upon your aura, suffocating your resilience, rendering you to return home and to the four walls that are so familiar and safe.

 

Are you enticed by the streets of a busy city?  Where faces are unfamiliar and people are always in a hurry.  The gravel crunches beneath the soles of their shoes as they scurry to their destinations, while their conversations become airbourne and public knowledge.  Pigeons land before your feet, fearless of the large silhouettes that tower above them.  They peck at the ground that surrounds them in the hope of finding tiny morsals of food that have been discarded by the unfeathered giants.  As the traffic becomes congested and slow moving, vehicles rev their engines, releasing an abundance of unsociable fumes into the atmosphere.  The stench of petrol washes over your senses, entering your nostrils and working its way down until you can taste it, causing your stomach to churn and your mind to become clouded.  Departure is inevitable and the shopping will have to be postponed until another day.

 

Do you long to trek across a desert that harbours secrets from the past?  Where the ground is bronze and cacti flourish.  The sun beams down on to your body from its destination in the clear blue sky, causing your skin to tingle beneath its rays.  A unique landscape that appears to be peaceful and oozes with romantic notions, although in truth, uninhabitable.  Where temperatures soar and become unbearable and lethargy and isolation engulf your soul, where sleep is hungered, but would bring no refreshment.

 

 

 

 

Have you seen a newborn baby delivered from its mother’s womb?  As it uncurls from its foetal position and sees the world for the first time, a cry departs from its lips, announcing its arrival.  A miracle that has ten fingers and ten toes, a miniature person, perfectly formed.  From now it is dependant upon others and lays its life in their hands.  Only time will bring ability and with it the freedom to choose one’s own path.  Its innocence is refreshing and your belief is once again restored.

 

Have you ever found yourself standing alone in a tunnel?  When the dark, damp mist of the underground accompanies your every movement, wrapping its fog-like presence around your aching physique, sending a real, although clichéd chill down your spine.  As water drips from algae covered walls, the cold concrete of the floor penetrates the thin soles of your shoes.  There seems to be no end to this burrow that breeds silence and encourages you to surrender.  You believe your efforts have been wasted, but then in the distance you see a light that becomes brighter with every step you take, a light at the end of the tunnel.

 

In a world that is unpredictable, dreams are possible.  In a world of uncertainty, ambitions bring you to life.  With every beat of your heart, hope stays alive.  Why does the sea rush to shore?  Or spring bring new life?  Why does tragedy strike the good?  Or evil go unpunished?  Why do strangers fall in love?  Or birds fly?  When you do not have all the answers, simply be glad to be alive.