A Collection of Records

"The Beach" by The Neighbourhood

My heavy, brown boots sank into the sand as I walked. Seagulls squaked overhead, skimming the low, grey sky with their wings. I was on a mission to lose myself in the beach, to distract myself for even a moment against the endless throbbing in my heart.

I listened to the way the waves crashed onto the shore as I drifted along the edge of the tide. The wind roared harmoniously with the waves, whipping across my face the strands of hair that had been tousled loose from my cherry red bun. My senses were at maximum capacity as I fought not to inhale, but to enjoy every detail that I could find. However, I could not keep myself from gulping down the salty sea air in hopes of being able to still taste it when I was hours and miles away. For I couldn't bear the thought of leaving this place and having only the memory of it to keep me warm when the cold winter set in once again.

As I pushed the reality of this temporary peacefulness down into the deepest and darkest chambers of myself, I bathed in the sharp autumn air that stained my lungs. I imagined that I was condensing the crispness of the season and the music of the beach all into a little bag of tea, brewing the perfection and drinking it into my soul sip by sip. Making it last. Making it a part of me. The melody of my heart had become one with the wind and soon I could hear the song in every heartbeat of the beach.

I could see your face in the water, a blurry depiction of a memory that used to be clear and beautiful. You were always there, in the background of my pain, and you probably would continue to be for some time in the future. It was waking torture, every single day, but this is why I had the music. To understand where you couldn't. To comfort where you couldn't. To be my family where you couldn't.

This is why I had the music, and this is why I had the beach.