I Am an Island Girl

The rush of the waves is an instant high. The moment I hear its sound as it hits the shore, I know exactly I am in someplace I want to be. The sunlight is as perfect as ever. I do not care if it’s too bright. I don’t give a rat’s ass as the heat lets me sweat from the specific crevices of my body. It is the beach anyway. I can take a dip whenever I please.

The sand effortlessly possesses its passers-by as millions of fine granules stretch by the majestic coastline like infinite dreams. The sky, bright, as if the heavens are rejoicing. What more can someone ask for? It’s a place where I feel free. A place where I am who I am. My paradise. My island.

The beauty of the beach is its sheer laid back ambiance. I am amazed at how island locals live as if the world can stop for them and not the other way around. It’s as if the island holds some kind of force that transforms someone into a whole new different person. It has the power to shed off walls and inhibitions- turn people naked the way they prefer. Though people can literally prance around almost naked, the island does more than that.

How often can you enjoy an invigorating sunrise while you sip a cup of coffee on your hammock? How many times have you laid carelessly on the sand and stare at the stars for hours? I envy the islanders. But for a moment I realise, they do not appreciate the place like I do. For it is their norm rather than their escape. Witnessing something as such just gives you that instant gratitude. All of a sudden, you are thankful that you’re alive. And that you are privileged of experiencing such beautiful creation. Funny what an island does to me. And for some reason, I know the island does something to the others as well.

Growing up, I have lived with the beach. Though unfortunately, I do not know how to swim, the water has taught me to be brave in a sense that it is harmless. In a sense that it is calm. The shores have given me hope; that amidst the chaos, there are better things in life and that the water is always there. We may leave, go to somewhere else that we think is better, yet it never fails to wait for us. It never fails to renew us once again.

I am an island girl. The beach will forever be my refuge. The sun, my source of strength.  

Isla Reta, Talicud Island, Davao City

Kwebang Lampas, Pagbilao, Quezon

Crystal Cove, Boracay, Aklan