The verdant island shimmering in the distance – is it a mirage? A low cloud reflecting the ocean? Real? I notice the birds. Birds mean land. Land means better odds of survival.
As the raft drifts closer, an irrational fear grips me. Am I bound for jungle paradise or horror movie? Flashes of feral boys, a conch, a parachute come unbidden.
A thin strip of sandy beach separates jungle from ocean. I pull the raft clear of the waterline, prop it up for shelter.
The thunderous boom of a trumpet shell reverberates across the island. The odds on survival’ve gone down.
***
Stroke of luck that today’s Writing 101 prompt and this week’s FFfAW picture go together. I wonder if anyone else looked at the island and thought Ralph and Jack.
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I thought of Lost (which I just started watching on Netflix).
Wow, oh wow. This piece gripped me and kept me hooked. I felt the ebb and flow between hope and fear. And I need more! Lol.
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Oh, Lost is a good association. See, I just couldn’t get beyond Lord of the Flies…
Thank you, Izzy 🙂
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This is wonderful Sonya! I hate to appear ignorant but what is a trumpet shell? I imagined it being something involving war. I agree with Izzy regarding the back and forth feeling of fear and hope. Great play with the emotions Sonya. That hope went to zero at the end.
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Nothing to do with ignorance, PJ. That was a bit of a gamble on my part because I didn’t want to use conch again, and trumpet-like instrument sounded silly. In Lord of the Flies, they blow into a conch to assemble everyone, that’s what I was trying to get at. Sorry for the confusion…
Thank you, PJ 🙂
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Oh okay, you landed right in the middle of the Lord of the Flies! That is brilliant Sonya. I would never have thought of something like this. Wow!
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I liked the little hat tip to Golding’s Lord of the Flies here, very nice 🙂
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Thanks, Dan! Glad you enjoyed my Golding homage 🙂
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Thank you so much for making me remember Lord of the Flies *shudder* but still, great story 🙂
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Sorry about that. Glad you liked it nonetheless 🙂
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It’s ok lol 🙂
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It does look like an island from Lord of the Flies or Lost. An intense story. He/she must feel so deflated on hearing that trumpet call.
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I think the island on the cover of my copy of LotF must have looked like this one. I just couldn’t think of anything else… Thank you!
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A very gripping story, Sonya. You build up the suspense beautifully as hope and fear battle for supremacy. The boom of the trumpet shell finishes the story off really well, and leaves us wondering exactly who populates this island!
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Thank you, Millie 🙂
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You took me right back, then! The conch- ah!
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Yeah, sorry about that. I just couldn’t get away from LotF… Thanks, Lynn!
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When I read it at school I found it a very scary, rather depressing book and I think it’s shaped my view of young boys ever since!
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Great story, Sonya. You capture his vacillating emotions really well. 🙂 I hope the people living on the island turn out to be friendly after-all.
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I hope so, too… Thank you, Louise!
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I’ve never watched lord of the flies but I read your reply to a comment and it all makes sense :). Your choice of descriptive words added more strength to this story. Well done!
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Thank you, Ameena! Glad the comments cleared up any confusion 🙂
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