Camp Bay
I’m longing to feel like myself again. The winter has been long and dark — cold and bleak. My mind has been as grey as the sky, my brain foggy and confused. I step onto the metal ladder, its rungs warm under my feet from the sun’s rays. I’m back in my special place. There’s no one around — the bay is empty. I’ll have ‘my spot’ to myself for a few hours.
I look out at the sea. The peaks on the gentle waves are liquid glitter, sparkling like thousands of actual diamonds. The water laps at my toes as the waves reach me on the ladder. The coldness of the water momentarily takes my breath away, but I’m already starting to feel revitalised. I peer across the distance — Spain is just a hazy outline in the shimmering heat, and I have to squint to shield my eyes from the glare.
The water calls to me, and I can’t wait to be beneath the surface in my underwater world. Reaching the last step on the ladder, I dive into the blue — no hesitation. The water welcomes me, instantly kisses my skin and soothes my mind. All thoughts are gone. My head is finally clear. I swim deeper, at one with the sea and my surroundings. Down and down, I go, with only the sunlight piercing the surface.
I’m finally me again. Finally free.
Responses
We live on different islands, yet how uncannily similar are the feelings and emotions we experience in each of our locations — Gibraltar vs Orkney. After long years of living in a noisy, bustling city that often felt like a prison, I empathise thoroughly with the notions described after emerging from the cold and darkness of a long winter. Standing on the shore, with the sand between my toes, looking out to sea, I gaze into infinity, that liminal place where water and sky meet. Suddenly the dark clouds of all my worries fade away. I see things more clearly and I feel free.
– Response from CH Orkney