Beauty

There are places in this world that are beautiful without having to try. Blue-green waves crash along white sandy beaches. Mountains covered in green rise up out of the earth like tombstones reaching toward the heavens. The winds blow just perfectly whispering words of beauty into your soul. These are the places that we hold in our fantasies. They give us hope when we have none and inspire our broken wings to learn how to fly - so that we might escape our lives to spend eternity in places like this.

It helps me to sleep better to know that these places are out there. That even on the worst days of my life, these beautiful places exist. They hold no grudges and they keep no memories, and I have seen them.

I'm not sure where I am going next. I hold plenty of memories, and I carry the weight of a lifetime of trials and success, failure and heartbreak. I hold forgiveness in my heart, and grudges on my lips. I wouldn't leave any of it behind. I gave up paradise because the sunshine is never as beautiful as it is right after you have seen a little too much darkness. Still, I take comfort in knowing that somewhere in the world, right now, a beautiful sunset is setting over a place with no memories, and it's waiting for me when and if I should ever decide to return.