Dragonfly Dreams
A journey to Eden…
Is this EDEN?
Eden itself is a journey. A journey into unknown waters and untold territories. A journey, into the mind.
The road to my Eden starts in Lyme Regis, on the Jurassic Coast to the South of England. It is here that, in addition to fond memories of cream teas coupled and fossil hunts that I managed to get a glimpse of what could be Eden.
I see a large boat moored off the Cobb. The Cobb itself, has now mutated to house the HMS Ark Royal, the once proud Flag ship of the Royal Navy- ironically a victim of not a traditional war, but an economical one that the world is now waging.
It is here that the journey begins, to the edge of the world, to the place that is least habited by us Humans- Greenland. Every two months, the Ark Royal begins an eight day voyage to the Greenland Coast- the decks that were once landing strips for aircraft, now an open camping zone – mirroring the colourful houses that dot Greenland. The massive hangars, are now houses a zoo of endangered species almost like the Ark of biblical lore.
Once there, we witness one of natures most awe-inspiring visual treats, the iceberg- massive mountains of ice that are floating around in the seas. Fear, awe, terror, intrigue, wonder- a myriad of mixed emotions will overflow as the Ark Royal prepares for its ritualistic firing of the tuglines- into these frozen behemoths.
At the same time, the longboats are then lowered and a chosen few will embark on a fishing journey… where the catch are these icebergs- with hemp nets woven on carbonfibre nets. The experience in tugging these frigid giants as they groan and rumble is one that cannot be described in words.
Another boat will leave, and should you wish to go on it, you will discover that in exchange for the iceberg, the coast is wrapped with a shiny insulating material- to protect the coast from further degradation. As the sun shines on the frozen coast’s new skin, the landscape becomes alien, ethereal even, against the backdrop of the cold blue translucent ice.
Another six days pass, and you will return to Lyme, with the iceberg in tow, docking with the now extended arm of the Cobb. Like ants, an army of technicians and artists begin their work on the iceberg, as it slowly surrounds the Ark. Rope bridges connect the Ark to the now fragmented pieces of ice as they saddle back and forth, groaning as they slowly melt back into the sea. It is now that the second part of the journey begins….
Damp, and puddled, you shall feel, as you carefully step from plank to plank, onto the stripped portions of the hull that once was the Arks, now makeshift bridges and walkways in the space between the iceberg.
Ahead you see, one of these lumbering giants- as you hear it groaning and fizzling as it melts under the hot sun. There is little time left on this journey, as you enter a metallic cave- and at once you are bathed in darkness. Follow the light – and reach the end of the tunnel, for there may be hope yet. The light shall be elusive, just slipping out of your grasp when you reach it.
Keep moving, follow the light, and at once, you will be bathed in light of kaleidoscopic proportions- but you shall hear no sound.. just your heartbeat and the sound of you breathing. The groans are gone, the waves don’t roar anymore- the light makes you feel warm despite the freezing surroundings. Lie down if you like amidst the unearthly glow- there are blankets abound.
Should you move on, you will reach the pinnacle- but the journey ahead is a lot more arduous- but when you reach the final destination, you shall the horizon extend beyond into the infinite- and like me, I hope the doors of perception shall be cleansed- and everything appears to you, like it truly is- infinite.
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.
I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand-
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep- while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?
But nothing lasts forever, nor should eden, the world around is defined by change, and journey itself is a change of place… True paradise exists, when, the mind loses interest with time and space; and begins to embrace the world around in the way it truly is.. limitless and immeasurable.
Imagine a world where we allow the chaos around us to spread and travel through our bodies- a constantly changing landscape , with the order in chaos swimming around us.
True beauty exists everywhere, as much in growth as in decay. As such, destruction is often the forerunner of creation: nothing can exist without an opposition, just like similarity cannot exist if we cannot spot differences.
Nothing can and should last forever, should it be so, the value declines. The fleeting seconds of life in the dragon fly makes it experience the world in a different time and space than we do.
Flowers bloom, wilt and decay, the brilliance of their short lives cannot be perceived without the realization that such beauty cannot last forever and to make most of life while it lasts.
Fleeting glimpses of beauty has far greater impact than being surrounded and flooded by it. Eden is this constantly changing and evolving place of infinite perception, filled with hues of bright lights dancing with my every step.
Beautiful lights, punctuated by shadows forming zebra like patterns on the ground like alternating brilliant incandescent fire and deep glowing lines.
A world where the lights are brighter, purer- the shadows darker, menacing yet sensually appealing.
Beautiful forms of varying complex geometry that infuses with glowing light that transports us to a higher transcendence; orchestrated by the infinite brilliance of colours and a never ending horizon that shines and bursts with joy.
Welcome to Eden.
Now please exit in an orderly fashion, before the ground you are standing on crumbles into the ocean…..
