I open the door to this place I belong. A place where time stands still, where nothing has changed. A place that remains untouched by the vicissitudes of life. I open the windows and smell the fresh air. A cool ocean breeze blows through the window, as if to welcome me back. The evening sunlight flitters in like a welcome guest, as it always had. I watch the last embers of the fading light play with the gently swaying coconut trees outside. They cast long shadows in my room, forming monsters that dance with the wind. The dying of the light paves way to a beautiful sunset, the horizon painted in hues of orange and pink, growing darker by the minute. I have watched many a sunset through these windows, and yet its beauty captivates me now, like it did the first time. I feel thankful, that in this ever-changing world, this place and this sunset has stayed the same.
I dust off my armchair, grab a book and throw my legs over the window sill, as I have done many a hundred times. Soon my mind begins to wander and I contemplate this moment and this place. This is my niche, my own small corner in the world. A place where I forget and stay forgotten by the rest of the world. It is in this place that I spoke my first words and where I learnt to read. It’s in the yard outside that I’ve skinned my knees learning to ride a bike and broken countless windows playing cricket. This is the only place in the world with my pictures on the wall, and my trophies and medals in a shelf, slowly gathering dust. It is here that I’ve spent my entire childhood, and my years through school. This is where I’ve cried myself to sleep and also where my greatest ideas were born. This is where I’ve lost myself in sorrow and in solitude, and also where I’ve picked myself up again, a little stronger that before. Here, I’ve grown up and this is perhaps the only place where I am truly myself. As I close these doors, I open my mind.
Within these four walls, my thoughts flow unconfined and my hopes run free. Within these four walls, the walls I’ve built around myself come tumbling down. My imagination runs free here, unfettered by the cares of my life, and my dreams take to the sky. I may shut myself from the world outside, but in here I’m in my own world. I may be alone, but in the quiet of my room I can hear my thoughts louder than ever, and I’m never lonely. If I’m silent enough, I can even listen to the low undertow of feelings trickling through my mind, which I never notice otherwise. Sometimes I just let that undercurrent flow and at others I dive into it, and let myself drown in it. When I’m here, I let myself feel what I truly feel without restraint or caution. I dare to explore the deepest and darkest recesses of my mind without fear of what I may find, because in here I’m safe. The rest of the world is a blur to me, merely figments from a half-remembered dream. This is my world, my kingdom, here I am whole. This is my sanctuary, here I am at peace. I am where I belong, I am home…
I dust off my armchair, grab a book and throw my legs over the window sill, as I have done many a hundred times. Soon my mind begins to wander and I contemplate this moment and this place. This is my niche, my own small corner in the world. A place where I forget and stay forgotten by the rest of the world. It is in this place that I spoke my first words and where I learnt to read. It’s in the yard outside that I’ve skinned my knees learning to ride a bike and broken countless windows playing cricket. This is the only place in the world with my pictures on the wall, and my trophies and medals in a shelf, slowly gathering dust. It is here that I’ve spent my entire childhood, and my years through school. This is where I’ve cried myself to sleep and also where my greatest ideas were born. This is where I’ve lost myself in sorrow and in solitude, and also where I’ve picked myself up again, a little stronger that before. Here, I’ve grown up and this is perhaps the only place where I am truly myself. As I close these doors, I open my mind.
Within these four walls, my thoughts flow unconfined and my hopes run free. Within these four walls, the walls I’ve built around myself come tumbling down. My imagination runs free here, unfettered by the cares of my life, and my dreams take to the sky. I may shut myself from the world outside, but in here I’m in my own world. I may be alone, but in the quiet of my room I can hear my thoughts louder than ever, and I’m never lonely. If I’m silent enough, I can even listen to the low undertow of feelings trickling through my mind, which I never notice otherwise. Sometimes I just let that undercurrent flow and at others I dive into it, and let myself drown in it. When I’m here, I let myself feel what I truly feel without restraint or caution. I dare to explore the deepest and darkest recesses of my mind without fear of what I may find, because in here I’m safe. The rest of the world is a blur to me, merely figments from a half-remembered dream. This is my world, my kingdom, here I am whole. This is my sanctuary, here I am at peace. I am where I belong, I am home…
