Waves Of Hope

• Ferenique Bris, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2020

For generations, the Hurley’s had spent endless days voyaging across oceans far and wide. After the devastation of World War Two, the island was lacking in employment opportunities, leaving most people to, in some way or another, associate with the fishing industry. The islands oceanic surroundings meant that its economy was largely dependent upon seafood trade. The Hurley’s had been avid members of the fishing community since its establishment in 1945. The ocean was like a second home to them.
*
Eva Hurley awoke to the distant crashing of waves. Rays of golden sunlight shone through her translucent curtains. Through the sunlight, Eva watched as dust particles danced around her room. It was located at the top of the lighthouse, explaining its inadaquate capacity. Before her father’s unexpected death, Eva would communicate with him and the other sailors using the various light signals she had memorised as a five year old. Even now, every so often, she still sent ‘I love you’s’ and ‘I miss you’s’ to the boats that sailed by, imagining her father was still there to receive them. To move out now, Eva felt as though she would be neglecting her father’s memory, betraying him even. She couldn’t leave, not now, not ever. The lighthouse was her home, her ONLY home. She had lived in her overcrowded room for as long as she could remember. Although it was nearly six sizes too small, over time, Eva had learnt to love it. The room was like a book, beholding every chapter of her life. Eva’s secrets, special items, thoughts, emotions and memories all found a place within the half painted walls of her chamber.
Her father’s passing had left a gaping hole in Eva’s heart. A hole too deep, incapable of regeneration. Another missing piece to her puzzled mind. A darkness too dark to brighten. An endless void of sorrow and despair, lacking hope of any sort. To abate the deep melancholy Eva was constantly burdened with, she often escaped to the tranquility of the ocean.
*
The sand warmed her bare feet as she sat perched upon the ruined edge of her father’s boat. The same boat that had wound up on the shore ten years ago. The same boat that had so cruelly abandoned Eva’s father in that storm ten years ago. Heat screamed at her pale skin and tears stung her eyes as the sun’s almighty glare threatened to blind her. The salty sea air clung to Eva’s nostrils, blocking out all other scents. She listened to the taunting whispers of the ocean, slowly falling into its loving embrace as it pulled her closer and closer. The rise and fall of the waves had her mesmorised. The repetitive motion reminded Eva of her life – one second everything was fine and the next it had all come crashing down on top of her. She had been swallowed by a wave of anguish and hopelessness.
Lost in her thoughts, nostalgia flooded Eva’s mind until she was submerged deep beneath its surface. Eva remembered the happiness that had once adorned her mother’s now-glazed eyes. The way she had once looked upon Eva and her sister with love and care. Now, there was no hope left in her hollowed body. Nothing Eva could do would bring her mother out of the constant scowl she wore each day, like a permanent mask that Eva had since stopped trying to remove.
The ocean had always been a place of reflection for Eva. Her routined visits gave Eva the strength to progress through the hardships of her childhood, with or without her mother’s help. Its thalassic qualities had the ability to send ripples of calm through to the depths of Eva’s mind, constantly relieving her of the daily adversities of life; its waters forever bonding her to the memory of her long lost father.