The Cove

Another beginning of a story. The plot it still rolling around in my head, but hasn't all come out yet.

The Cove

 

May 19^th, 2011

I finally arrived at the beach house.  It’s so quiet here.  The only sounds are the rush of the ocean as the waves come ashore, and the occasional chirruping of birds and insects.  There are no other houses or people anywhere that I can see as I stand on the beach and look up the long stretch of white sand.

It took me over an hour to make my way through the jungle on the narrow, almost hidden road.  The last person I saw was an attendant at the Texaco station, who gave me a funny look as I asked for directions to Moonrise Cove.

“Are you sure that’s where you want to go?” he asked me.

“Yes,” I replied. “That’s the place my uncle mentioned his beach house was.”

“Funny,” he said, tipping his cap back to scratch his head.  “I didn’t know there were any houses out there.  Nobody ever goes there anymore.  Too hard for tourists to find.”

“Well,” I said, “I’m looking to escape the real world for a few weeks, so a little seclusion is just what I need.”

“Seclusion is what you’ll get out there,” he remarked, almost to himself.  “It’s off the beaten path-most people don’t bother trying to find the place anymore.  The roads aren’t exactly well-maintained.”

He gave a friendly wave as I drove away, but I caught him staring as I glanced at the rearview mirror. He was right about one thing-the drive was rough.  The smooth concrete of the main road soon gave way to cracked pavement, which not long after turned to gravel.  Perhaps road is an overstatement-it was more path than road, barely wide enough for my Jeep to get through, and even then I could hear the branches and vines scraping the sides.  I was glad I had filled up at the station before making the final leg of the journey.

Just as I was beginning to give up hope of ever finding the place, the jungle opened up to sand and sunlight.  I drove along the treeline on the sand until I came to the house.  “Beach House” is generous-this place is more like a shack.  But it’s charming in its own right, and I’m sure it will do for the next few weeks as I forget about the real world.

 

May 21^st, 2011

 

Guess I spent too much time in the sun- I’m red as a lobster. 

It’s strange though-the sun doesn’t even feel all that warm here-hard to imagine getting burned and not feeling it at all.  But the last couple of nights have been torture.  I feel cold as the heat leaves my body, but pulling so much as a light sheet over me makes my skin feel as though it’s being scraped with sandpaper.

I brought some cooling gel for such a time as this, but it doesn’t seem to touch the pain.  The only thing that helps is being in the water.  Just standing in it brings relief.  The sea is crystalline; the lightest of blues near the shore, and only hundreds of feet out does it turn darker.  I can look down and see my feet in chest-deep water, with small fish swimming circles around my legs.

Being in the water is heavenly, but as soon as I get out I can feel my skin prickle and itch because of the burn.  Looks like I’ll be staying inside for a few days until the redness lessens.

 

May 27^th

I’ve peeled a bit, but otherwise the sunburn is gone.  My skin is darkening from being exposed to the sun’s rays on a daily basis.  I look in the mirror in the house and almost don’t recognize the face the looks back at me-the pale, clean shaven face and light blue eyes are replaced by a week-old beard and a tan.  It’s nice-I feel like I’m a different person.  Being out here in the quiet, surrounded by beauty-I’ve  almost forgotten what brought me here in the first place.

But now isn’t the time to write about this yet.  I may never write about it.  All that matters now is the sea and the sky and the silence.

On to lighter things: I saw a monkey today.   It was a small one, but I have a feeling there are more.  I heard some chittering noises when I was near the back of the house, so I proceeded into the lush growth of the jungle to see what it was.  I almost passed right by it-it was sitting on a low-hanging branch, eating pieces of fruit from a tree.  It would pull a piece from the branch, gnaw through the tough outer skin, and then pull out the juicy pulp with its teeth.  When it finished one piece, it would throw it aside, making noises like it was talking to itself.  I saw watching it for a quarter of an hour as it plucked fruit after fruit and tossed them aside.  Finally, it threw one piece and it hit me square in the chest.  I couldn’t help it-I gave a shout of surprise.  The monkey jumped and ran off, but as it was about 10 feet away it looked at me-no, glared at me-as though I had purposely scared him.

It was unfortunate-he was a funny little fellow.  I felt a certain kinship with him at that moment, all alone, talking to himself as he went about his business.

As I walked back out of the trees though, I felt eyes watching me, and when I turned to look back I could see eyes peering at me from the shadows of the branches. 

It seems I’m not welcome in their jungle…

 

May 31^st

A squall is lashing the beach right now.  As I sit writing this, I can hear the rain hammering against the top of the house.  It sounds like someone is shooting a machine gun at the roof. 

I could see the storm brewing off in the distance as I walked along the shoreline.  The clouds seemed to come out of nowhere, and I had to cut my walk short because they came inland so fast.  It was like a wall of murky gray lumbering towards me, seemingly gaining speed as it approached land.  Lightening sparked and thunder boomed, and I began to run once I caught sight of the house.  I was only 15 yards away when the rain started, big wet drops slapping me as I ran.  It was such an onslaught that I could barely see 5 feet ahead of me, and I was completely soaked by the time I made it to the door. 

When I got inside I changed and dried off.  I left the saturated clothes hanging off the edge of the tub in the bathroom, then went into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee.  The rain was cold too, and I needed to warm up.

Looking out the window, I swear I can see a funnel cloud out in the distance.

 

May 31^st (night)

Turns out the funnel cloud turned into a water spout-I could see it a ways out in the water.  I tensed when I saw it, watching to make sure it didn’t turn in towards me, but it spun itself out of energy somewhere in the ocean.  The rain stopped as quickly as it came.  It poured for hours, and then poof-sun shining, birds chirping.  I walked outside and the clouds were receding (or moving on to dump on someone else).  It’s nighttime now, and I swear the sky is clearer than I’ve seen since I got here.

The nights are amazing.  There are no city lights, so every star in the sky can be seen-even when the moon isn’t out you can walk around without a flashlight.  I could read a book by starlight, or write in a journal, as I’m doing now.

There’s one star in particular that I’ve noticed.  It seems brighter than the rest-I suppose it could be a planet, Mars or Venus or something (should have paid more attention in high school science class). It’s bright though, and nice to look at.  I noticed it the first night, but for some reason it looks brighter tonight, more pronounced.  Maybe the rain just cleared the skies up so I can see it better…

I like sitting here in the dark, watching the waves roll up onto the sand.  It’s peaceful.  I feel like I can finally relax.  I could sit here forever with the waves and the sea and the quiet.  This cove is the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time.