Blue Ocean

Blue Ocean

A vast, unimaginably desolate field stretched out before him. Streams of sunlight escaped through breaks in the ominous clouds stretching over the endless green field. They looked to the old man like golden columns with their tops in the clouds, sent down to give light to anyone crossing the field.
A warm breeze swept past, and the old man followed its progress by watching it cut a swath through the tall grass, bending it before its presence, moving in a straight line. He soon lost that breeze, however, in the various ripples of other such breezes, coagulating in the middle of the field until he could distinguish no specific winds movement.
The old man took a step forward into this green ocean. Various insect noises were all around him, as well as the noises of birds all around, though he saw none. He felt no aches or pains as he walked forward, even though he had been walking such a long time. His redwood walking stick was notched and worn, having slowly frayed with the slow passage of time. It was his only friend now, and he was glad to have such a reliable one.
He walked with nary a thought drifting through his head. His feet didn’t tire, and his steady pace didn’t waver. His eyes, deeply gray and clouded, wandered over the landscape surrounding this field. Mountains surrounded both sides of the field. They stood as sleeping giants; ancient behemoths who were lain out in endless slumber across the skyline. They held a powerful presence in themselves; the old man was daunted by their size even from so far away. Luckily, that wasn’t his destination. Behind him, to the west, lay the path the man already knew; people he had known; wise and foolish choices he had made; everything but the most important thing.
The old man knew that the most important thing did not lie deep in the brooding forest, or over the formidable mountain chain. It lay east, through the tall green grass, under the gray clouds perforated by streaks of sunlight. East, to the blue ocean was his destination. That was where he would find what had been lost. How he missed what he had lost.
It had been a Saturday night, another relaxing night on their vacation. The old couple vacationed every few years at their house on the beach. They had been on the porch at twilight, drinking wine and laughing. They were in their twilight years themselves, but they were happy in each other’s company, and life had been good. The next morning he had woken to find his wife had not risen before him, but lay still beside him.
The walk was hard going. This was not due to any physical reason--it was the air. It seemed to the old man that each breath was weighted, slowly pulling him down to the soft grass. It was more and more difficult with every step. The crickets chirped softly, and a bird started singing softly somewhere to his right. Each breath was weighted, pulling him down…harder with every step…he should really stop here.
The old man sank to his knees in the tall grass, breathing in deeply and slowly. He let go of his walking stick, and it fell softly down beside him, hardly making a sound. Following its example, the old man fell forward into the waiting grass. It was now very hard to breath. He turned his head to the side, gray eyes half-closed with exhaustion and comfort. His blue ocean forgotten, he rested.
A soft rustling sound came through the leaves to his left. He more fully opened his eyes. A dog stuck its head through the grass and cocked its head at this prostrate figure. It was of an average size, with a long snout and a jet-black coat. It barked, and, tail wagging, started running ahead, to the east. The old man sat up. That dog looked familiar. He would have to stand up to make sure.
He got to his feet slowly, as is the habit if you are an old man and it hurts to stand, but again there was no pain. The clouds, once so immobile, were now moving. They were gathering to the north and south, letting light flood in the middle, creating a stripe of light running east to west. The old man, caught in the light, looked for the dog. He found it, running ahead of him again. He couldn’t see its legs for the grass, but its black, shiny coat and way of running brought back memories of his past. Nostalgia rolled over him, and he breathed in deep. The dog was his, or it had been many years before. It had died when he was a child, and he had forgotten about it until now. He bent, picked up his walking stick, and followed the dog through the light. His breathing was easy again, his pace was steady, and his head was clear. He would follow his dog.
To him, he followed the dog for a few minutes, but it could have been hours. He walked as if hypnotized, keeping the dogs black coat in front of him, noticing nothing else. His first notion of the outside world was when he noticed that the light was leaving. The sun was setting in the east, directly in front of him. The darkness was closing in behind him, the light running out before him. He stumbled, and lost the dog. Keeping a firm hand around his walking stick, he started striding forward faster, using the setting sun as a target. Faster and faster, he strode faster and faster, he started to run.
The darkness was all around him now, enclosing him and making his breaths not heavy and peaceful, but cold and piercing. With no dog to guide him, no sun to aim for, the old man just started running forward, arms outstretched, flailing his walking stick out before him. Silence was around him as well as the cold, sacrificing another of his senses. No birds chirped now, no comforting noises to let him know he wasn’t alone. He wasn’t going to make it, he wasn’t going to make it, make it, make it…
The old man emerged in twilight, a strip of yellow beach stretching to his left and right, and a bright blue ocean stretching out before him as far as he could see. The sun was setting now, almost down. A house stood to his right, and his wife was standing out, looking at the ocean from the porch. She turned around to see him, and smiled. He smiled too. His dog was running up and down the beach, barking happily to see his master. He was finally home.