This gives me a strange comfort.
Standing among the rocks on the shore, I look out
across the waters. There is land on the far side, but I cannot make out anything
except that there are trees there. I know she was taken safely to the far
shores, never to return to me, but the waters are rough and the wind is blowing
hard, so I cannot make it across to her alone! My heart cries out for her, but
all sound is lost in the roar of the wind and waves.
Eventually, the emptiness and loneliness are too much to endure, so I turn away
from the sea to find a path up the steep bank to discover what I will do now. I
climb, and I climb, until I am high above the water. Then I look back out over
the sea. The sky is clear, and the sun is shining brightly. To my surprise, I
can clearly see the land on the other side. There are forests and meadows, there
are buildings in what appears to be a park. In the waters, there are islands
that I could not see from the rocks below. The sea even seems calm from this
viewpoint. Her new home does indeed appear to be a better place, and the view is
much better from up here.
Again, I find myself among the rocks by the water's edge. I don't know how I got
here; I didn't mean to return. But again, I find the wind and the waves are
strong and violent. They are telling me that I cannot cross the big sea. The
islands I saw from above are invisible from here, blending into the horizons.
Again, it is too much for me to bear. I must get out of this place. But as I
turn to climb the banks again, I find the path that I took before is gone; I
cannot find it.
So I wander along the shore until I find another path leading up the bank. This
one is steeper and less defined than the last one, but I set out to climb it
anyway. Soon, I find myself stuck, with no way that leads up. Then I hear a
voice from above telling me to move to the right where I will find a root to
grab hold of and some footholds to continue my climb. Off to the side, someone
calls to me, asking me to throw him the end of the root so he can swing over to
me. Then we begin to help each other climb up the bank.
Again, I make it to the point I reached before and stop to again take in the
view across the waters. I know I cannot go there now, but I know that life there
is good, and someday I will be taken there to be with her. But for now, I will
climb higher so that I can see more.
I know that from time to time I will again find myself at the edge of the
waters, not knowing how or why I got there. Those hard and hurting feelings will
dig away at my heart again and again, but I will then look for another path that
leads up the bank, and I will find others climbing beside me. We will help each
other along as we climb to the points above.
Sometimes this all seems fruitless, but each time I climb, I feel a little
stronger, and I climb a little higher. The peace and comfort I get from seeing
the far side of the waters from a higher point is what makes me want to keep
climbing and help others to climb higher, too.
unknown