The umbrella sat stuck in the sand like a person, overseeing today’s festivities. A sparking sun shone with relentless heat and purpose, illuminating the hazy deep browns and blues of the forest. Birds chirped in different meter, making it difficult to distinguish where they were and what they said. People walked hand in hand among the foliage, letting their legs drag against the thick plants that...

The tropical night was shrouded in darkness, adding an air of mystery to the night. The clouds above us are heavy with rain, it is nearly suffocating the captivating emerald grass. The rain starts to drizzle and the bright rays of sunlight, just nearly peeking through the dark and light gray clouds that covers the sky. The rain briefly transforms into a dazzling display of colors before fading awa...

Smells of coconut

plumeria I’m the air

Salt water breezes

Life with no care

Sunny sandy beaches

Tropical oasis

Ocean filled with creatures

Beautiful places...

In a shadowy tropical landscape, towering palm trees loom overhead, their fronds swaying like ghostly figures in the dim light. An eerie fog clings to the ground, swirling around gnarled roots and curious vines that twist like skeletal fingers. The air is thick with moisture, carrying the faint scent of decay and the distant echo of unnatural sounds. Hidden beneath the underbrush are vibrant flowe...

Gözlerim muhteşem güzellik karşısında şaşkınlıkla etrafı seyre dalmıştı. Güzelliği anlatmaya kelimeler yetmiyordu., yağmurun arka'sından parıldayan güneşin aydınlattığı kenarlara sıralanmış gibi dizilmiş her cins ağaçlarla ve çiçeklerle bezenmiş, görüntüleri ise renklerin her tonuna boyanmış gibi rüzgarda hışırdayan usta bir dansöz gibi sağa sola ahenkle kırrılıyorlardı....

The sand so white

Trees blowing in the wind

The smell of salty air

And sweet drinks in coconuts.

A minute, a day, a week

Just getting away from it all

Smiling, swimming, sleeping

Every day is perfect

Laughing, lounging

Soaking up the tropical sun

Thriving

In a little slice of heaven...

The rickety boards creaked and the rope bridge swayed as I inched across the ravine, desperately trying not to look down.

The only way out was over. If I just made it across, I would make it to the main road and back to the beach. I could turn around and retrace my steps — but the terrain was too dangerous, filled with jagged, slippery rocks, and it was getting dark.

I was flanked by vines and...

Straggling from the aircraft, I could have almost sworn my arm was broken.

“Where am I?” I wondered in the midst of my groans.

I crawled onto sand that tried to consume me. The specks that clung onto me were the last thing I needed. What I saw before me was a landscape of palm trees. Coconuts budded about eight feet high. Through the ringing of my ears, I could hear pigs squealing and scrambling a...

It tasted of rotting fruit and decay, an anti paradise of an Eden left abandoned and overgrown.

Like that forgotten apple long ago, the one that bore the bite of sin, sappy juices seeping from its incision, the forest too was a symbol of evil. A thing once whole who’s fleshy peel had been breached by naïve, greedy teeth.

•••••••••••

Thick canopies of moss fanned across the earth, it’s outstre...

My cookie jar is a world. A fairyland with turquoise and chartreuse sands, baby ferns, and in pride of an emerald tailed mermaid. I wanted a rainy day project for my children. The boys and I made terrariums on the generous dining room table. They died. A row of glass shrouds snaked the ikea blonde wood.

Next came the parsonage window sill. The days of rainy day activities gone. Looking for whi...