Sunrise.

I woke up on this island, alone with memories, feet swollen from the humidity, scratches from climbing on the same rocks that are here forever, the ones that do not move to us. Remaining unchanged for this lifetime of ours. I meditate, eyes closed, mind wandering, repeating in my mind a mantra with each breath, watching the sun hidden behind clouds rise above the ocean. Now the rain pours down, thunder crashing in the gray skies above, pouring sheets of moisture through the green canopy in a way that convinces you it will not last long, but god dammit, you'll know it's here while it lasts. Torrents, short-lived, creating space to breath and move, for the air to once more fill with humidity and symbols to fill my mind, demanding permanence on my flesh, should I choose to make them so....tattoed by skilled hands clenching a long, thin sheath of bamboo...a different sort of scar


I get up early this morning, almost too late to run to the other side of the island to watch the sunrise, but I do so anyway, sweating in the pre-dawn heat...I sit for a long while, it rains and I squat underneath a rock until it stops...the sun appears and I practice yoga for a while and enjoy the feeling of the rough rock on my bare feet...my flesh pealing away in layers, leaving an imprint, my imprint...I was here.