Thanks for Strangers

Thanks for Strangers

He shivered as he recalled the bitter gagging motions his number body
had made as the salt water penetrated his pursed lips. It could have
been any of the many instances this had occurred that night, his mind
like his body so battered that he was unable to distinguish specific
moments from his time in the water.
Time had ceased to be distinct from the moment of treachery from his
hand crafted vessel, it's hull tilting till the terrible spray of the
ocean seemed to rise parallel to it's deck. He remembered seeing his
partial reflection in a moment of calm on the frothy mass which served
to be the oceans surface before all at once it became alive once more
and seemed to grasp at him, claiming him for the deathly cold of the
depths. He had already broken the raging surface of the ocean before he
became aware of the stinging cry that echoed through his mind emanating
from the deep gash above his right ear where the boom had swung to
strike him. Despite the absence of time he had felt in the cold waters
what could only have been seconds submerged may well have been a
lifetime here on the surface in the storm which howled in fury. As he
adjusted his eyes to the driving rain once more he saw in despair that
his vessel 'The Angel Gabriel' had already been pushed a distance of
metres on without it's captain by the raging currents all around him,
who threatened to overcome him. His attempts to rejoin the vessel
however only seemed to push the craft further from reach and he quickly
realised it was a useless gesture. Instead he uttered a silent prayer
to however was listening and began to conserve his energy that would
doubtlessly be needed for the night ahead. He watched the ship he had
crafted himself sail on through the night without so much as a backward
glance to it's friend and captain.

It was somewhere between the 3rd and 4th hour that he had spent
drifting in those icy waters that his head first sagged into the cool
depths, both the physical and mental numbness making him ignorant to
it's gradual downward progress. His harness was partially broken unable
to be fastened securely for a man of his size which resulted in him
being allowed to slip out and under it's care. By this time the
tingling sensation that had initiated in his fingers had spread fully
through out his body. This sensation had served to increase the sense
of desolation his situation provoked and resulted in him allowing his
head to remain submerged in the freezing depths for a few seconds. He
spent these seconds reasoning whether it was worth the effort required
to lift his head out of the calming waters.
Deciding it was he dragged his head out of the still calming waters
into the freezing gail that swirled above the surface coughing as the
ice cold air reached his lungs in savage gasps as he reapplied his
harness clasping a lifeless hand around the buckle.
This was as close as he came to death that night; his bitter
stubbornness saving his life through the sheer determination that the
hours of effort already endured battling the elements would not have
been suffered in vain. This stubbornness he had come to consider in his
many days since was the last stand of the human soul, a sheer
determination not to concede in times when the easy route appears
appealing through a trick of nature played on tired eyes. A
determination not to lie down because above all else that has occurred
I have not lied down yet and somehow in this darkest hour I will once
again overcome! How these words swelled his pride these times since he
could not describe but they spoke to him in a different language as
from the hollow promise he swore that night in the waters.
Eventually though, somewhere between the 7th and 8th hour in the
waters, he had realised even this steely resolve was being slowly
corroded from him by the numbing salt waters. By now his throat was on
fire, salt water he had swallowed through the night having slowly
aggravated his throat till he could taste nothing but it's bitter
taste. Had his stomach not already been empty this taste would have
made it so hours earlier. But as it was he lay, bobbing in the
perfectly still waters of the storms aftermath scanning the desolate
horizons that imprisoned him. In this stillness surrounding him he was
free to recognise the alien nature of his environment, one where a man
was not governed by legal precedents instead governed only by nature
and it's sole decree, survival of the fittest.

His eyes were closed now, the salt water and howling wind having
practically extinguished their abilities of use. He now reserved their
pained use for the single purpose of identifying the sounds he
occasionally heard or at least hoped he heard. By the time his mind had
realised his eyes had identified a ship as the source of the humming
the eyes had already been forced closed in self preservation. Despite
the pain once more he wrenched his eyes open and there again, a boat
off to his right bobbing up and down in the currents offering glimpses
of it's green hull and the promise of salvation before his eyes closed
once more in an act of certainty. He ignored the pain in his eyes for
they had served their purpose. There was a boat!

But what to do? If he hadn't been so dumbstruck he might have laughed
at his plight. Having spent over 9 hours in these waters now praying
for such a miracle he had not once paused to consider how he ought to
react should his wishes be granted. Should he shout? Wave? Was Pitch or
Volume the most successful ? So many thoughts and options crammed into
his mind he felt that he was almost drowning, till all at once they
spoke to him with one powerful voice. What to do? 'EVERYTHING!'.

He screamed. He bellowed an inhuman cry from the most basic of human
instincts, self preservation flailing out at the waters around him.
Again and again he screamed roaring like the storm had done only hours
previously until after what seemed an eternity a foghorn shattered the
air in response as his spirits rose parallel to the pitch of the boats
engines. Time once more seemed to pause but this time he welcomed it
like a friend for although his sight was gone he could now clearly hear
the hum of the ships engines as it pushed towards him and then suddenly
he could feel the boats bow waves pass alongside him as the engine was
cut. There were strange voices that spoke like loved ones he didn't
know and then there were hands upon him dragging him out and away from
the waters grasp and rinsing his eyes with tender care.
As he opened his eyes on this the first of many days he never thought
to see he smiled a lifelong smile at the unrecognisable faces that
surrounded him. For though he knew not who they were or where he was
headed he could be safe in the knowledge of one thing. He knew that
this alien environment understood the laws of humanity and compassion
and here he was safe to close his eyes to sleep.