It was dusk.
The southern land sky, a multitude of pinks and oranges, greys and blues, mashing together to farewell the fireball that had scorched the land, that day. The colours reflected onto the waters below, making the sunset appear bigger than it was, almost a presence within itself.
The air.
The seagulls were hovering in flocks, above the sand, like Imperial TIE Fighters, waiting, just waiting. The leader squawked for positions, each squawked off, as if to count their position within the squad. Their voices over rode the sound of the water, which was rolling in from another land, towards the shore, no longer large or angry, but barely there and caressing. The smell of salt was a strong presence in the air, as if anyone there required reminding as to where they were at that very moment in time.
The sand.
It was white, not yellow but white, and indication of the geographical start to this part of the land. It was fine, finer than normal sand, almost powder. And it was still warm from the glare of the sun's rays raining down all day. There were tufts of thin strands of strong grass like growths dotted all along the foreshore; litter that had been lifted from today's lunches by the breeze were tangled amongst them, fighting to get out of this green prison, but not with much luck.
The breeze.
Was still warm, but slight for most of the time, however every now and then, as if to tease, it gathered speed and whirled around to remind anyone around that it was still there, still present, still able to make anyone there, close their eyes tightly to the flying sand, and skin raise in goosebumps.
The beach.
Was deserted of people except for her, or so she thought.
Her.
She wore a long black cotton skirt, one that skimmed the sand. A white singlet top finished her outfit. Her thongs, she carried in her hand. She had been walking along the beach for some time, her head down, as if too afraid to face the world before her. Her curly hair whipped around her face every now and then, framing an unmade up face. She stopped, turned and looked out towards the water, towards the now dark pinks and greys, as if to pay homage to the passing of the sun. She stood looking for a minute or two and then in one fluid movement, sunk onto her bum to sit on the sand. She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, now a tight ball of human, almost sitting so no one would see her.
I.
I was standing further up the foreshore, coming down here most nights for a walk with the dogs, but tonight I had left them at home, glad of the peace of not having to run after them or throw a ball. I almost didn't notice her, if it had not been for the full moon that was now filling the sky where the colours had been, I would have missed her. I could tell that she did not want to be disturbed, that even though she was sitting very still, her mind and emotions were racing at a million miles an hour. I knew there would be tears rolling down her cheeks. I knew her heart would be pounding and I knew her eyes would be open.
Even though I knew that she would not be able to hear me, I carefully reached down to my camera, hanging from it's strap over my shoulder. I was a photographer, and I had come down here to take some night shots of the full moon filling the blue black sky, but for some reason, I knew that I needed to take a photo of this girl. I dialled and twiddled with knobs and zoom lenses and clicked away, standing up, kneeling down, lying down, changing direction. For some unexplained reason, I could not stop taking photos of this form, that was almost ghost like in the scene. Bathed in the moonlight, unmoving, and yet..........
I wondered about her. What had brought her here to this secluded part of the beach. I didn't need to think about that one for long, I knew. Even though I had not seen her face, I knew her and who she was. You see, I had sat in that same position, on that same spot years ago when grief and pain and heartache had been too unbearable to feel, and contemplated walking into that water, hoping it would wash away all that I was no longer able to bear.
But just as I stood, a small dog came running from where I was standing down, barking and growling at me. I heard a voice, "Bobby! Bobby! come back here right now" I looked up and saw you standing there, I couldn't see your face, but somehow I knew that I had found what I had been looking for, I had found home.
