Océano

I already told you about my home didn’t I? But I didn’t really write what I wanted to write. What I want is to tell you about the ocean. The ocean has always played a huge part in my life. It’s weird isn’t it? How can a body of water play any part on somebody’s life? I don’t know, it simply does. It just holds a part of my soul. It helped mold that soul.

Quarantine was a hard blow to all of us. The change of paradigm hit us all in ways only we can understand. But it’s an undeniable truth that some struggled more than others. My quarantine actually helped me. Taking a step back from society actually helped my mental health. In solitude, I reconnected with myself and what I needed.

Back to the ocean. That would be the title of the quarantine chapter of my life. When I moved back to my mom’s I was hating the idea. I missed my husband and my own apartment. I didn’t know how much I need to go back so I could move forward. But then everything changed. I started laughing again. I started playing in the pool with my cousins again. I wasn’t 22 anymore. I was 9 and life was easy again. We started swimming in the ocean every day. It became a ritual. 5 o’clock hit and we were already in our bathing suits, nobody had to tell us where to meet, we would just go. We would see the sunset from the ocean. I started dreaming about waves, they were all I could see when I closed my eyes. I began sleeping better. They were all I could hear. My outfits were strictly bikinis and beach dresses. I was in a dream of comfort and happiness. A life where I did only what I wanted.

If you ever ask me what my happy place is, there’s one moment in time that stands out. I can feel the sun on my skin. I close my eyes and I still see the colors the sun has painted in the sky. Sometimes it’s pink and orange. Sometimes it’s purple and red. Sometimes it’s all of them. All I can hear is the noise the waves make underwater. I can hear it when I dive under the waves to avoid being dragged by their strength. Or when I’m floating in the ocean, and I can hear the wave coming closer and closer. My family is close by, laughing and playing. We’re all happy. There’s not a care in the world. There’s nothing to stress about. There’s only you and the ones you love, and the water.