July 4, 2024
Mom and I went to Brisbane. We spent one night there. We took an Uber to the train station. Then we rode the train into the city. From there we found our hotel.
The room smelled like shit. Mom went downstairs and told the guy. He came up and was surprised by the smell. He moved us to a different room.
We took an Uber to the botanical gardens. It was on a big hill. It was pretty cool. We walked around and checked out all the plants. I liked the Bonsai trees.
We noticed a massive mine on the other side of the hill. We could see it from behind a chain link fence.
The entire opposite side of the hill was dug up for a huge mine. It was so weird. I don’t know what they were mining.
After that we Uber’d back to the city. We walked along the riverfront. We got noodles for dinner. It was a nice evening.
I’d already seen the city, but it was fun doing it with mom. She was so amazed. Australian cities feel so futuristic compared to Canadian cities.
I didn’t know if I would miss Australia when I left for New Zealand. I found myself feeling pretty relieved to be in Brisbane after living in Christchurch.
The people seem friendly and more outgoing here. The whole country just seems to be more people focused than New Zealand or Canada.
The silence that separates us is palpable. I remember the first time we met. Your figure was like a damn rail.
You were powerful and made me weep. I tried to calm myself. Now I wish I hadn’t. I miss the days of extreme emotion.
Our life together has grown so dull. I just stare as you chew your meat. We’re like caged animals.
Our love was forged in the kiln of war. Our love was harnessed for terrible things. I still dream of you. I dream of the days before the darkness descended. When we were only 19 and 20. Those days are precious.
How I long to hold your hand. How I long to rest your body against mine. It is a feeling that eludes me, for now. I crave it.
The universe can do all of this for me. I must first calm down and breath. That feeling is already existing. It is a state of mind. It is for me to engage.
The camera student took it upon himself to ask his girlfriend for her hand in marriage.
“Marry me tonight. Beneath the stars. Orion’s belt is in perfect alignment!”
“Oh Churro,” blushed May. “Our time together has brought me so much happiness. Don’t you know that you complete me? You’re like the perfect uncle!”
“Don’t speak like that,” whispered the camera student. “I’ve taken you places. I’ve made you happy, haven’t I?”
“This is true. You have taken it upon yourself to arrange a beautiful flowerbed in the garden. That’s something my previous husband never did. You deserve to be recognized for that.”
Churro adopted a cheeky and devilish grin. He blushed like a fawn. He brushed away the compliment with a limp hand. “Take me to your family tonight! Let’s announce our engagement!”
May continued to resist her lovers pleas. It wasn’t that she didn’t love the man. She did! She was deeply in love! She’d known this since they first swam in the ocean. She had seen the layers of his courage.
No- her reluctance wasn’t from a lack of love. It was not her reason for turning the handsome devil down. Her reason was quite understandable. It has to do with things that most of us can relate to.
“How can you take from me what is mine?” Asked Churro, his brow wrinkled like the mountains.
“What do you mean?” Responded May after a long pause.
“I thought you were my birth right.”
“So I don’t have a say in any of this?” Asked May, her expression one of great surprise.
“I’m saying that this conversation oughta be finished!” Chuckled Churro. He talked persuasively like a salesman.
May closed her eyes. She felt the cool evening sun on her skin. She took a deep breath. She stroked Churro’s spiky hair.
Darkness descended on the valley. The villagers huddled in their cabins.
“Who brought the marshmallows,” growled a gold prospector.
“The desert is beneath the train tracks,” said a beautiful female teacher. “It has been hidden.”
“Why’d you do that?” Asked the miner.
“For our own good! Word has it that the Clan of Cunts is fast approaching. They wish to take the love from our blood. They will stop at nothing to own our destiny!”
“What’s that gotta do with the marshmallows?!” Roared the butcher. “This night belongs to us! We shan’t live in fear like a clan of tabby cats!”
“Indeed ye speak truth. But let me say ye something. The Clan of Cunts has declared themselves hungry. We shall not feed them!”
“We would’ve finished eating by the time they arrived,” observed a wise sage. “Ye has made a fatal error in your calculations.”
The villagers roared in agreement. They threw the gorgeous teacher out the door like a sack of waste.
She became a leper. She was exiled. She wandered into the woods. She befriended ferries and elves.