She heard the bell, behind her and to the right. She swam to the left and forward. Land must be this way. She’d been swimming in the ocean’s tide for what seemed her whole life. She tried to make her way to land and happiness, but it always seemed just out of reach.
The bells were a constant reminder of the hazards, the traumas, the roadblocks life has thrown in front of her. Just as she was about to glimpse the sight of land, the bell began to toll.
It was a slow, methodical sound. Ding, Ding, waves rushed over her head, pushing her under the surf. She clawed her way back to the surface just as another of life’s waves crashed over her. Down she went, into the dark depths of the ocean. Once again, she fought her way to the top only to hear the bells continue to toll, ding, ding.
She was exhausted. Each direction she went was met with new and more challenging obstacles. And she’d fought them, one by one, sometimes multiple impediments at a time. She’d been fighting her whole life but duty, commitment, tenacity, and perseverance never seemed to pay off. They only kept her afloat in a world that was constantly trying to pull her under. To drown her for never being enough to her family, her children, and her friends. She was never enough.
What would happen if she stopped swimming? No longer treading the waters of life, but throwing her arms up in defeat? What if she slowly sank into the dark depths of the ocean? What if she let it take her? Would anyone even notice? Would anyone even care?
She looked towards the horizon. The land was there, in the distance. She’d seen it before but life never let her reach it. Always snatching away any meager happiness she’d managed to find. She so wanted someone to hold her, keep her safe, and love her. Perhaps if she let herself sink the waters would shelter her wrapped in the omnipresent weight.
Or, should she swim for the horizon once more?