Creative Project
Andrew Westmoreland
Going to Shore
It was just like any other day at sea. The crew went about their morning duties. The Captain had yet to wake up, most assumed he was up most of the night. That seemed to be the norm for him recently. The Captain was constantly looking off in the distance, seemingly very disconnected with the rest of the crew. There was good reason for his distress.
The Captain and his crew had been on this journey for most of their lives. They had seen a lot on their way, from the worst of luck, to the best of times. Through it all, the ship as a whole had grown stronger and wiser. Spirits among the crew members had been going up. The feeling of triumph felt closer than ever, but their destination, was still unknown.
The Captain was leading them to an island. An island that not even the Captain was sure of its existence. Many tales and legends come from the island, but none know anything about in full. This common goal amongst the crew lead them on for many years. The Captain had full confidence the island could be found, until now. The doubt was finally setting in recently for the Captain. The fear that he had lead his faithful men all this way for nothing ate him away.
Finally, the Captain emerged from his quarters. He appeared very distraught, obviously not getting enough sleep. He stumbled his way to the edge of his ship, and looked out on the horizon, as he did most mornings. He admired, for a moment, the bright blue sky and the endless ocean that laid before them. He glanced up to look at a seagull he had spotted. Then it hit him, they must be near land!
He knew they were nowhere near any port. The island must be nearby! He shouted out to his crew members, instructing everyone to keep their eyes peeled. The ship buzzed with energy. Everyone desperately ran to and fro, trying to find a good vantage point. The Captain almost couldn’t believe it to be true. He whipped out his telescope, and peered out farther.
After several hours of anticipation, the Captain spotted it in the distance. That was it, he was sure of it. He wanted to yell for joy, but someone on the crow’s nest beat him to it. “LAND HO, LAND HO” came the voices from above. The ship moved with haste towards the body of land that had alluded them the whole time.
The ship got close enough to the shore to row to, so a fleet of small boats were sent out. The Captain lead them out to finally step foot on the sand. As they rowed closer and closer, the Captains thoughts wandered. What if this wasn’t the real island? What if this was a dream? What if all of this hard work was actually for nothing? By this time, they had gotten close enough to step off their vessels. The Captain stretched his foot out towards the beach, when the island disappeared, as if it was never there.
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