The Wave

The Silhouette

As the sun blared into my eyes, I wondered what would become of me if I kept walking this way?! I had managed to walk for 5 minutes longer than the time before, smiling to myself, I realised how happy I was with this small accomplishment. As I stumbled towards another tree, to stop under for a few minutes, I spotted what looked like the faint outline of a building up ahead. Before I reached the tree, I had made up my mind, I changed course, urged my body forward and headed for the mysterious silhouette that lay ahead. After walking for some time, I realised that I had underestimated the distance between the building and me. Even after this long, it looked like it was the same distance away as when I started. I fell to the floor in despair!  I was burning up, I had almost run out of the water in my bottle and I hadn't eaten since I had left home. Even though it wasn't long, it felt like an eternity. My stomach ached from emptiness. I prayed that I would reach this salvation soon and that there would be food and water there (my body needed it).

I tugged off my bag, hoping for something that would save me. Suddenly, a hysteric laugh blurted out of my mouth. Look at me, a 14-year-old girl sat in the middle of nowhere, rummaging through a bag of I don't know what, heading I don't even know where!! What was I thinking, I had only been gone for a day and I was burning somewhere in hell, with nothing helpful in this stupid backpack. I lay there for a while, thinking the situation through; sometimes the best way to solve a crisis is to stop and think, clear your mind and try to look through a different perspective. I must have fallen asleep because I woke up to realise night had fallen, it was the same as when I had left my house, it looked like constant dusk with the sun never moving. I stared at the sun, trying to understand how could the sun have changed like this, constant daytime! Did the earth still orbit the sun, like I was taught in Physics at school? Where had the moon gone? How is the sun dimming at night? I scolded myself, telling myself I was wasting time, but that was true. I guess I was making up excuses not to carry on. I set my eyes on the silhouette that I was heading for, even though the sun still lingered in the sky, it was easier to travel at night. The thought that water might be in the building over there drove me forward. One foot in front of the other, 1, 2, 1, 2... 

Having this rhythm really helped, or was the fact that I wasn't too hot, either way, it felt amazing. I trudged closer, imagining what it would look like once I got there. If I kept going maybe I would find out!...