Inspirational

Inspirational

For one week, I sat helplessly at my computer while searching for just

the tiniest bit of inspiration to write about. Nothing ever came to me, and I had it

with trying to find something to base my writing on? Why had it been so hard for

me? Well, I guess all the good ideas had been taken at the time. I started to write

about just a normal person with nothing going on, but it was so boring that I just

had to stop and delete it all. I started to think that my last good idea was

unfortunately already put on paper and were of no use to me now. Pounding the

computer felt very good too, but if I ever got that idea I had been thinking about for

a week then I would never be able to put it down.

I had been writing for a couple of years, just passing the time between

college classes to make it through the day. For years, I had dreamed about

becoming a famous writer and it was so close at hand that I could practically feel

the success in my bones. Day by day, I was slowly writing several stories that I

would eventually send to a publisher collectively to produce a book called “The

Works of Timothy K.C. Olb.” This time though, I could think of no subject for a new

story. Missing a topic made me fear that my dreams were all going to collapse right

before my eyes. All of the pressure my parents had put on me to become a

success would be lifted, because I would finally become a writer and the money

would be rolling in. But first, I had to find a way to shake this severe writer’s block

and find a couple more sources for inspiration.

I slowly rose up from the chair and paced across the apartment I had

rented for closer access to the school. Air conditioning suddenly was the only

noise throughout the whole house, and it sounded like the winter wind full force on

the snow. Outside, the weather had reached unbelievable degrees between 90% all

the way to 120% Fahrenheit. It was surprising to me how the people walking

around outside were still alive, and not melted by the sun’s extreme ultraviolet

rays. Luckily enough for me, I had my powerful fans inside of my house that were

capable of freezing the sun during the winter. Ever since I was young, the heat had

never appealed to me. It always seemed to be too hot!

After venturing to my room, I located a few books that might just help

me find out what I should write about. Upon reading a couple, there was one book

that seemed different and unique and several ways. Such a book talked about life

in nature and away from all the pressure and stress of everyday life in the cities

and towns. It seemed like a good idea to me, getting away from the everyday

stress of work and school each day. Some time away from the computer desk

would probably be good for my mind and my health too. Upon everything else, I

guess it was something I would just have to think about. Nothing new there, I was

seemed to have something to think about here or there every day.

For the next few weeks, I stayed away from my computer because I was

afraid that my eyes would explode if I subjected them to the common appearance

that was the computer screen. People had started to comment that my eyes were

starting to fill with the blood stored in my head, and I knew it was time to take a

break. Unfortunately, though, I never found a good enough topic to base my story

on after all. With the break, I found some of my old habits something refreshing to

try out after the long period of staying at the computer night and day. Finally, it

seemed like I was having fun again in my life.

As school passed, summer vacation was almost upon me. I had hoped

and wished that it would just come sooner; the wait to be free from education was

unbearable. School was never really intriguing to me. Education always was easy

for me, and it was just never really interesting or fun whatsoever. When I was in

high school I was close to being voted valedictorian, but when I wasn’t it was no

real disappointment to me. Never did I take offense to being accused to not caring

about my grades, because it was very true. Why would it really matter? My grades

were always high enough to please my parents, so I never had anything to care

about.

When the final day of school had come around, I was filled with

excitement to leave the school once and for all until next September. As the clock

struck the hour of 3, the school filled with the loud ringing of the school bell as well

as students willing to leave the school as much as myself. When I finally reached

the outside, my heart was filled with relief as I saw the light and felt the heat of the

blazing sun. Being free from the grip of dark education was a feeling that could

never be replaced in my heart. With passing grades across the board, I couldn’t

have been more satisfied with the end of my year. Now, there was a whole 3

months to waste in the confines of my home. Life couldn’t have been better!

When I got home, there was just something about it that made me feel

very lonely and sick. Maybe it was the fact that I had an unfinished story saved

onto my computer, but I wasn’t sure. Soon after my arrival at home, I found myself

leaving yet again to the car in order to find somewhere that I could relax and take in

the fact that I had no more responsibilities at the moment. Arriving at the blue truck

that my father had given me several years ago, I jumped in and was off before I

could say the sentence that I just have spoken. My truck has always run very well

for me, and it wasn’t failing me as far as I could tell.

While I was driving through the town, an object in the distance caught

my eyes in an instant. There was a very large blue lake ahead, and it looked like

the most relaxing place in the world. But then again, spending time on a lake

would subject me to a whole lot of sunlight and unnecessary rays coming toward

me from the sun.

“Maybe,” I thought to myself, “it’s time to finally introduce myself to the

object that seems to keep the population alive and brings everybody their basic

lives.”

As my truck kept getting closer and closer, my dreams of getting close

to this lake were almost full force into reality as I saw a tiny island right in the

middle of this naturalistic wonder. If only I could find a way to the island, then I

could live in peace in wonder and finally become one with something outside of my

house. Also, time away from the busy town might give me some inspiration to

finally finish the story that was going absolutely nowhere. An experience on that

island would help me broaden my horizons and give me an idea of life with nature.

When I made it to the outskirts of the lake, I located a dock perfect for

getting onto a boat. Unfortunately for me, there was no boat there to just get on to

and start going straight for the island I knew nothing about. Luckily for me though,

there was a boat at my parent’s house that was just perfect for this occasion.

Looking at the island, it didn’t seem too far away from the dock he was now

standing on. Judging by the distance, I concluded that the trip would take no more

than one half of an hour. With my new data, I climbed joyfully back into my truck

with my parent’s house being my following destination.

My parents had never lived too far away from me, because they would

never want to drive long distances to discover how I was or what I was doing at the

time. With my success on his mind, my dad would never stop pestering me to do

everything I possibly could do to get my name on billboards. For my mom, she

couldn’t live one second without knowing what was going on in my life. They lived in

a small blue house about 3 blocks from mine, and I always stopped by and visited

from time to time when I had some schedule space not used up. From the time I

was born to the present, they hadn’t changed whatsoever. They were very

interesting people to live around, and we never had a dull moment together. Before

I knew what was going on, my truck was pulling up to the house in no time at all.

My parents were eating their dinners outside when I got out of the car

and walked up to them, and they couldn’t have looked so surprised. As I walked up

to them, they embraced my presence. My mom, being the talkative one, always

had to be the first one to say something to me. Meanwhile, my dad sat in his chair

eating his nightly meal while my mom raved on and on about anything and

everything imaginable.

“How was your last day of school? Are you excited about your big

summer? It’s been really hot out lately, and I have a million and a half sun burns on

my skin!” My mother exclaimed, “Are you wearing sun screen? I really think you

should have some because you know what will happen if you don’t put it on! Did

you do well in school this time? I know you always have, but I just want to make

sure. You know that your grades are very important to your father. He’s been pretty

sick lately. I think that it’s all of the sun getting to him, but he always likes to be

outside no matter what. We’ve been really missing you, Tim. I’m so glad that you

came to see us. You are really a good son. Speaking of, the Yelons next door just

had a new son. He’s really cute! You should go over and-“

“Mom, do we still have that rowboat that we used to go out on during the

summer when I was younger?” I asked patiently.

“Why, yes, I was just going to give it away. You seemed to come just in

time. There was a junk sale going on down the-“

Knowing that my mother probably wasn’t talking about anything that I

could really put to use, I went into the house and ran straight to the basement.

Within a pile of blankets and plastic coverings, I located the old violet rowboat that

had seemed so familiar to me when I was younger. Nothing had really changed

about it, and I found it peculiar that I could no longer bring forth the image of the

rowboat when I had been in it back when I was a small child. Nevertheless, I

brought the rowboat to my truck without delay and quickly loaded it onto the back

before I changed my mind about it. Now I could bring the memories of trips out on

the sea with my parents as I rowed myself to the island that had looked so

peaceful and quiet when I had seen it from a far away distance.

As I walked up to my parents to say goodbye, I wondered if my mom

had even noticed that I wasn’t there listening to her anymore. I could see her

mumbling to herself, it appeared, when I was loading the boat into the back of the

truck. My father, of course, was just sitting in his chair reading the newspaper

looking for anything that would spark his interests. I found myself stopping

midway, deciding that it was best if I just left as I was so I wouldn’t bother my

parents any further. After all, they probably thought that I was gone already without

looking at the truck in my driveway.

Within a few minutes, I was once again inside of my nice cool apartment

looking around at the environment which I had spent so much of my time looking

for that one topic that would become my next story. Now, it was time to decide

what needed to come with me and what needed to stay within the confines of the

place where I had lived. On first thought, my clothes instantly came to my mind.

No way was I going to stay on an island without those! As the thought came to

mind, I grabbed the big suitcase which I always had in case a situation like this

happened.

Clothes were the basics, so now I had to really think about what I would

want for a vacation away from the apartment. My stove and microwave would be of

no use on an island, neither would they fit in my suitcase. A couple of cans of

soda and some snacks were thrown into the bag, and I could always catch fish or

come back and buy some food.

Knowing that I would have a clear mind, I threw in my notebook in case

that one good topic finally reached my brain after I had been waiting so long for it.

Time with nature and the other land I was so unfamiliar with would probably help

me think of the perfect topic. Exploration, discovery, and relaxation all came to

mind when I thought of the different experiences that might help arouse my mind to

bring about the topic that I knew was somewhere deep inside myself in a place I

could not locate. Of course, writing in a notebook would be much different that

typing stories into my laptop. Change was something that I just needed to subject

myself to, though.

With the exception of a few necessities such as a toothbrush, blankets,

and some books, I was ready for the adventure ahead. Venturing into an

undiscovered land for myself would be a very interesting time for me. This is just

what I needed to do to finally become a better writer and make my life turn around.

This was the time that would change my life forever, and make me a success as

well as make my father proud of my accomplishments. This experience… would be

life-changing.

When the next morning sunlight arrived through my window, I was off

faster than a cheetah after its prey. I stopped only to grab my shoes and my

suitcase, and then I got into my truck and got to the dock as fast as I could

without breaking the law. Once the dock was in sight, I stopped the truck and ran

to the dock with my boat over my head. Reaching the end of the dock, I threw the

boat in and jumped in it with almost as much power as I had thrown it in. Eager to

make it to the island and reach inner peace, I ran quickly back to the truck getting

the suitcase and the keys I had almost left behind because of all of the

excitement. When I was finally firmly seated in the boat with the suitcase rested at

the floor of the vessel, I grabbed the oars and rowed as fast as I could to the island

that was very close and yet very far away.

As the island came closer and closer to my line of vision, I saw an

immense forest and a riverbank that emptied into the ocean. The shore of the

island was covered with many rocks and few small patches of sand untouched by

such minerals. It looked to me like all of the land was untouched by human hands,

a rare thing to see in such an age of history. Undeveloped land would be the

perfect place to live in quiet and solemn peace by myself. Within few minutes, the

land was within my grasp and closer than it ever was before.

As I got off of the boat, I tied up the boat to a large rock planted into the

ground and grabbed my suitcase. When I stepped off the boat jagged rocks on the

sand cut into my shoes, piercing the skin on my feet. I knew now not to step over

here without anything covering my feet anymore, unless I wanted holes all over the

bottom of my shoes. In the distance I saw a peculiar structure, and I learned that it

was a cabin as I got closer to it. When I reached the front door, 3 confusing words

were etched into the wooden door.

“This is Dijimek,” the door had told me. At that moment, I had no

idea who Dijimek was or why he decided that he wanted to be a door at all. But I

just decided to ignore Dijimek and open the door to see what lie within the cabin

walls.

Inside were a bed and a table with a few counters here and there with

paintings of the forest that surrounded the structure hung on the walls. It looked as

though someone had indeed lived here before, but it was nicely fixed up and clean

as if the island was expecting me to visit. On the floor lied a beautiful brown carpet

that matched the wooden walls beautifully, as if the wall and the carpet were made

of the same material. It looked as though I had found my place to stay for however

long I decided to stay on this island.

I quickly took out everything in my suitcase and placed it where it belonged.

My clothes were put next to the bed, my snacks on the counters, and my blankets

on the bed. My toothbrush and my books were placed in one empty corner of the

cabin, and my notebook was in my hand when I decided to venture out into the

unexplored land.

When I got outside of my temporary home, I wasted no time walking through

the trees and the grass that were beside my cabin. There were several trees,

providing a very large area of shade that I couldn’t help but embrace instantly. All

throughout the island there was a small brook that brought water from one end of

the island to the other. Upon tasting the clear substance, I concluded that the water

was very tasty and okay to drink. With the trees covering the island, there was

barely any land that was without the shade of the trees. This, I decided, was best

for me anyway.

Soon enough, my dreams of living peacefully on an island by myself

collapsed completely. There were sounds suddenly accompanying me every day

and every night, and they were relentless in my ears no matter where I went. It

seemed as though these noises were after me, and I could not figure out what they

were at all. No matter where I went they were with me, but I soon convinced myself

that it must have just been loud factories somewhere nearby the island. No matter

how hard I tried to believe that the din was coming from factories, it had an eerie

sound about it at all times. It felt like footsteps were coming closer. I soon came to

a point where I just denied that the sound was there whatsoever.

But soon enough, the sound annoyed me to a point where I couldn’t

listen to it anymore. At this time, I was living on the small deserted island for

exactly one month on the calendar. Since I had not found my topic, I decided that

it wasn’t going to come to me anytime soon with the loud noise invading my ears

every minute. I took all of my stuff out of my cozy house, and packed it all away

into my suitcase that I could finally use again. Then, I threw my suitcase into the

boat and decided to take one last walk through the large forest that took over the

island before I left it forever. This was probably the worst decision that I ever made

in my life, and I will always regret it.

While I was walking in the forest of trees and grass with the brook

slowly moving along leaving a small sound, the noises that I had heard for about 3

weeks got louder and closer to my ears then they ever had before. As I continued

walking, I thought that I heard footsteps near the bushes to my left side. Slowly, I

brought myself to the bushes. I pulled apart the bushes, and as I did so I noticed a

patch of redness that I could see clearly against the natural green. I thought I had

found berries!

I went to pick one, and as I did I felt a very skin like texture. Then I heard

a large, powerful groan that could not physically be coming from the bushes. A 20

ft tall red figure with dark black hair and fierce black eyes stood up from a massive

hole underneath the bushes, and I realized that this creature was the farthest thing

from a berry that ever was.

“Who dare disturb Dijimek?” This creature had asked me in his very loud

booming voice that scared me like I had never been scared.

It all made sense now. When I had reached the cabin door, it was a

warning that Dijimek lived on the island. The other words that belonged to it must

have faded off over time, or else the warning would have made more sense. All of

the noises I heard must have been the footsteps of Dijimek walking around the

island. Dijimek was not a door, he was a demon!

Instead of answering Dijimek’s question with the obvious answer being

myself, I decided to flee. Though Dijimek was very large, the trees prevented him

from seeing me once I was out of his immediate sight. He tried to chase after me,

but he couldn’t find me. Thus, when I found the edge of the island that almost

nearly took my life, I decided to swim rather then take the boat. My clothes and

such weren’t worth my life, and I swam away from him as fast as I could underwater

so he wouldn’t see me leaving his kingdom.

No wonder the island had been deserted. Either everyone that went to

the island was killed by Dijimek, or left as soon as they found out that he was

living there with them. Luckily enough for me, I survived the island. Now, I could say

that I….ran away from a gigantic monster who had threatened to take my life away

from me.

When I finally made it home, my heart still pounding from my escape

from Dijimek, I decided to lie down on my couch and take in the whole experience

of living life on the island. While running away from a gigantic red demon was not

exactly joyful, the island was otherwise peaceful and relaxing. It was a good trip for

the most part; finally getting away from the apartment which was all I knew for a

while. After I made it home, I was no longer afraid of the sunlight and the heat that it

brought with it. For the most part, island life revealed many things to me that I just

needed help with in order to realize that it actually happened and that it wasn’t just

another crazy dream.

After I relieved the experience over and over again, I decided to take a

trip to my parents’ house to tell them the unbelievable story of what had just

happened to me. When I arrived at the house, I still found it hard to talk. My parents

were yet again outside. My mom was yet again talking about everything underneath

the sun, and my dad looked like he was in an alternate universe where there is no

sound at all. I didn’t know if I should just start talking to them about it or if I should

casually lead into the very strange topic. Before I knew what was going on, though,

my mother had already located my truck and proceeded to talking to me about the

island instantly.

“How was your trip?” My mother asked. “Did you see a bunch of people

there? Were there any good places to sleep? Did you finally find that topic you

were looking for? Were you eating enough? You look skinnier. Do you want some

cake? I made some today because I figured you’d be coming home soon. Go

ahead! It’s right inside. I was thinking that I should cover it with green to celebrate

the island, but we were all out of green dye. So, instead, I decided to cover it with

some brown for the dirt. Do you think that was a good idea? I gave your a father a

piece, but he didn’t really say anything about it. Sometimes I wonder if his voice

box is broken or something. He doesn’t even say anything to me anymore. Should

we take him to a doctor? His hearing might be off too because that would explain

why he never answers my questions. Are you ok? You look out of breath! Do you

want some water? There’s some I bought at this store. They were on sale, 20 for

$2! Can you believe that……?”

“Island…..” I found myself blurting out with significant space due to my

lack of air. “……demon……sun……chasing……death……blood……stay away!”
“What’s wrong, dear? Can’t you talk? Do you want to lie down? I got this

new mattress upstairs! It was on sale with the water! Your father always seems to

want to say that I just buy everything on sale. But why put things on sale if you

don’t want them to be sold? I mean we will probably need that mattress

someday…”

After my mom’s ramble continued on, something happened that I

thought could never happen ever again. At that moment, life showed me that the

strangest things can be possible after all if you just wait long enough. For as long

as I can remember, my dad was a man who never talked about anything

whatsoever. But, at that moment, my dad finally had the right time to finally speak

up to my mother when she was talking about basically nothing. I will never forget

the words that he said, and I will never forget the way that he said them.

“Dear,” my father had said to my mother. “Your son is fine. Just leave

him alone for the time being. I know why he is out of breath. I know why he can’t

talk well. After you see the demon Dijimek, it takes a very long time to finally find

your voice once again.”

***********************************************************************************************

Three years later, I finally realized my story and got it published along

with many others in a book entitled The Works of Timothy K.C. Olb. My father,

finally finding his voice again, had convinced me to write the story of Dijimek so

people could know about the dangers that are all around us. I got the island

blocked off so nobody could venture off there yet again, and realize the dangers that

I had to face. My book was a unique success, selling 6,000,000 copies all around

the world. Every now and then I ventured off into schools and read some of the

stories to children, teaching them how adventures can be dangerous. But, no

matter how many demons you may encounter, adventures are always

INSPIRATIONAL.