A Trick the Darkness Plays (122)

I see the cliff approaching and I am on the verge, of running towards it. The precipice not a dangerous void, but a jumping off point for something else. A plummet into the crystal blue, pristine waters of something new.

The dream state replaces, nightly falling asleep bliss, where concentration eludes. Where nothing matters but letting go and drifting off to slumber.

I drifted, floated...slowly..into this spot, betwixt, between, here and there.

The rocks, leave their crevice, bits of generational stability, begin to crumble and topple down the slope. Here I stand, listening to mineral and dirt fall.

A breeze, tickles my hair against the side of my face. It feels irritatingly comfortable.

The tips of my toes, just off the ledge. Scrap the grooves. Trying to connect a tactile sensation with an auditory one. For some reason I am barefoot. Yet, I know the hike, to this height, must have been grueling shoe-less.

No need to assuage. The clarity here is like a smell, a familiarity both welcomed and haunting. Like an ear worm struggling to escape.

My toes wiggle, make contact with damp, textured soil- worms drop over the edge, sliding down with the glistening minerals. They slither as they reach the bottom, uninjured and happy to be in a new location.

This is a trick the darkness plays. The obscurity removes distraction. Subtle becomes decisive.

It becomes derisive somehow. Mockingly luminous. Every thought has a detail within this scene. Insecurity, joy, contemplation- each crisp elements, building the layers of this moment.

Dirt, rock, edge- falling, clear blue waters, unimpeded access to an action. No fear. The slip of granules becomes a plunge of gravel, then a rubble avalanche.

The side of the bluff escapes my stance, becoming bedrock and slab- tumbling into the sea.

I step back to avoid the landslide.

My escarpment has disappeared and I am surrounded by nothing. A trick the darkness plays. Nothing does not mean danger. Eclipse does not mean an absence. I do not fall, sink or descend.

I stand, water, tickling my feet.

Twilight replaced by sunrise. Oranges, yellows and pinks whisper hello. I hear them, spiraling in, settling in around me. Whispy and warm. Familiar. Reminding me of reality. Circumstances. Opportunities. Beckoning me awake.

Darkness giggles. Slowly retreating. Waving from the shadow, with a smirk.

My eyes flicker, light trickles. My dream world succumbs to a buzzing alarm. Daylight sings its daily romance. I smile. Knowing that darkness has another trick up its sleeve.

I look forward to tonight's wild ride. To the stitch in between. To the trick darkness plays.