Circumstances forced me to move beyond the borders of the house I used to call home. I was alone, scared and confused. To be honest, I felt lost in the midst of everything which made sense and was familiar to me.
So I set one foot before the other and started walking, deserting my dungeon for the time being. I looked over my shoulder a few times before I lost sight of my beloved home, but my feet kept on walking and carried my in a different direction.
I found myself in an unfamiliar, but beautiful place. The trees grew less dense, but still swayed their tall bodies in the soft wind. The surrounding area became more rocky. I saw beautiful colourful flowers nested in a crack in one of the higher rocks. I’ve seen little baby waterfalls carrying the liquidized music of the stream forward, and I have walked past the shadows of a few inviting caves, but my feet just kept on walking.
Until this weary traveller was caught unaware by the sudden appearance of a cliff in front of her. I looked up at the mountain peaks ahead of me, which stood tall like monuments in the distance. I was lost and I felt trapped, tired, exhausted.
I sat down for a while, too tired to think. My feet too numb to walk any further. The setting sun was pulling the dark veil of the night over the sky, much quicker than I would be able to find my way out of there.
I must have fallen asleep, for when I opened my eyes the stars have all lit their candles, cuddling themselves in the creases of the black velvet sky. ‘Come’ .. a female voice spoke softly behind me.
Was I dreaming? How could there be anybody else beside me, here at the foot of the cliff. I was startled to say the least, but not afraid. Her eyes were glowing, like that of a fairy or some magical creature. I could sense that she wouldn’t do me any harm. ‘But how, where..’ I started asking, when another hand drew my attention and pointed in the direction of the cliff.
The hand belonged to a man, who stood strong and fierce beside her. My eyes followed his hand in the direction of the cliff. A bridge? My facial expression must’ve completed the question for me, when he answered .. we have lowered the drawbridge to our lair to come and help you, rescue you. ‘Come’ she said again.
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The moment felt surreal. Who were these strangers? And why were they helping me? They helped me to my feet and led me across the bridge, to where they lived.
In the months that followed, he would show me around. Introducing me to their world, lending me his eyes to sometimes look at things with a different perspective. Sometimes he would quote someone, or make a short statement of his own, with an ending open for interpretation. And he taught me to think, to question things and not just assume and accept everything on face value, and to form my own opinion about things in life.
She on the other hand, I always smile when I think of her. She would let me sit beside her while she was painting the most beautiful pictures, capturing the essence, dare I say the magic of the world as they knew and perceived it. Sometimes she would let me close my eyes, and she would take my soul hostage and captivate me with the most beautiful words, as her poetry, utterly beautiful, introduced me to the places few have been. There was music in her voice when she spoke.
These kind hearted beings took good care of my injured soul, each on his or her own way. They found me at such a crucial time, but instead of walking past me, they stopped for a while to hear me breathe.
Now I see the drawbridge between the two of them has been lifted. And my heart aches for both of them. Neither of them realise how much they have helped me to create a new path for my feet to tread on. I wish I was able to say thank you, or make things better for both of them.
Today I feel sad .. while revisiting that place .. and watching those little waterfalls weeping – for them.
[It's all in the title. Ek dink aan julle, opregte sterkte vir beide.]
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