So as our Creative Writing final, we were assigned to either write 10 poems, or write a short story based off of a song. I chose the 1980's classic, Africa, by Toto. We were told to include three images to go with the story, and, well, I have not yet been to Africa, so I just looked through all the photos I have taken and picked the ones I have that could potentially represent Africa. The photos are a stretch, but I really enjoy how the story came out. Happy Reading!
“This is it baby. I am sitting in my seat, they just closed the doors. She's coming in, 12:30 flight. The moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me towards salvation. I’m on my way.” I said to my camera and then stopped recording. I set up my mini tripod so the camera pointed out the window next to me, and pressed record on my time lapse. I’m typically not a fan of extreme time lapses, but for this project, it is almost necessary. I hope she likes it.
It has been what feels like days since I’ve gotten some decent sleep. I’ve been far to excited for this. It is finally happening. I’ve been planning this trip for so long. But now, there is nothing I can do but get some sleep, I will thank myself later.
I woke up a few hours later to the beautiful sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean. I can’t see the water because of the clouds, but its such a beautiful sight. I’m not sure what time it is, my phone is still on Eastern time zone, and I don’t know the time zone in Casablanca, so I’ll just have to change it when I land.
The rest of my flight felt like forever. I pulled out my laptop to work on this project. I spent some time talking with the man in the seat next to me. I told him I am meeting my girlfriend who lives in Africa for the first time, and he said he was returning to his home in Rwanda to see his family for the first time since he imigrated to the United States during the genocide. It was fascinating to hear his stories. His father was killed in the Genocide, and his mother gave him everything they had so he and his expecting wife could live somewhere better. He lost touch with his mother, and just weeks before, he found her again safe and alive. He was stopping in Morocco on a layover. After long conversation with him I pulled out my laptop to show him my project. Shortly after, the man seated next to me tapped my shoulder. He turned to me as if to say, "Hurry boy, it's waiting there for you", and peeking out of the clouds, you can see land, and said,
“Welcome to Africa.” A tear fell from my eye. The moment is here. We still had an hour before landing, I spent that time anxiously staring out the window. I seek to cure what's deep inside, frightened of this thing that I've become. The impatience is agonizing. She’s so close, yet so far.
The next thing I know, I am finishing up at customs. It’s crazy how time works, one minute you are on the plane, the next you are about to meet the love of your life. There are big doors separating customs and the international arrivals waiting area, I am nervous walking up to them, this is it. She is standing right there, and I’m about to meet her. I take a breath and walk through, there is so many people, I can’t spot her out. I’ve seen photos of her, and I know what she looks like, but it’s hard to find people you’ve only ever seen photos of.
“Max!” a voice screams to my left. I whip my head around and there she is.
“Yasmin!” She runs up to me and hops in my arms. I hold her tightly against me. I have been waiting for this moment for all of my life. “It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you” I say to her. We look at eachother in the eyes, and can’t help but cry.
We turn around to leave and standing where Yasmin was standing is her friend, Aliyah. She winked at me. I had told her about my project, and she is helping me get some footage. This is working out perfectly.
We drive to her town of Chefchaoen, about five hours away. I am blown away by all the beautiful things I’m seeing already. And it is day one of our six week journey together. We are starting in Morocco for two weeks, then she and I are flying to Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. After that, well, who knows what the future holds. Back home in Colorado, I am an avid mountain climber, and Yasmin loves to go climb the High Atlas Mountains. We actually met over climbing, in a Facebook group two years ago. Now we are here. Gonna take some time to do the things we never had, she and I.
After dinner, she took me into her back yard, the beautiful moroccan sun was starting to set, the sky was a radiant orange hue. We climbed up the tree to a branch about eight feet off the ground, she looked me deeply in the eyes. I hear the drums echoing tonight, but she hears only whispers of some quiet conversation. We lean in to each other, and we share our first kiss. I have never felt so in love with anyone before.
The next two weeks were a blur. She and I were adventuring; she showed me all the best things to see, but the only view I really wanted to see has been right right next to me the whole time. We went and helped out a small village in the Atlas Mountains, we toured huge Mosques in Marrakech, we’ve wandered the vivacious souqs, it’s been an incredible adventure. Now we are going to Tanzania, and I am ready. I’ve been sending my footage to Kyle back home to edit together to pull this off. She still doesn’t have a clue, which is incredible, it’s actually going better than I expected. She is taking lots of footage too, and is just out of habit sending it to Aliyah, who is sending it to Kyle, oh, I hope she likes it.
In Tanzania, we head straight towards Kilimanjaro. It is a beautiful sight. It took me a while to grasp that I am actually in Africa with Yasmin, but this, I have wanted to climb this mountain since I was young. We have our gear, sherpas, and positive minds. I’m nervous, but I know that I must do what's right. As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti.
The climb is hard. And my thoughts are starting to become a misconstrued chaos, feels like The wild dogs cry out in the night, As they grow restless, longing for some solitary company. My cell service slowly gets worse the higher we climb. I’m supposed to get the final product from Kyle anytime now. Tomorrow is going to be the best day of our lives. She still has no idea what is in store at the top of that mountain. I closed my eyes and started to drift off to sleep, we have an early morning.
Today is the day. I received the final video from Kyle about 30 minutes after I fell asleep, I can’t play it now because I don’t want Yasmin to hear, and something about it being the first time for me will make it even more special. Today is summit day. It is technically still yesterday though. We need to wake at 11:30 pm in order to summit at sunrise. We pack up camp quickly, and head up. My breathing is getting shorter, my palms are sweating, I can feel the adrenaline rushing through my body. The climb is invigorating. I always feel myself when I am climbing, and this surprise with it is just making this to be the best day of my life. We can see the summit. Yasmin grabs my hand and holds it tight.
“We are almost there baby! I can’t believe this is happening!” She says to me. We hold each others hands as we climb up the summit. Just as we approach, I hand the sherpa my camera and wink at him. I told him my plan down at the base, he is going to climb ahead and set it up. Yasmin and I are taking our last steps to the top. We stop to catch our breath, not even paying attention to our surroundings yet. She looks at me, and smiles. I take her hand, and pull my phone out with the other, and play the video. It starts with me on the plane saying “This is it baby. I am sitting in my seat, they just closed the doors. She's coming in, 12:30 flight. The moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me towards salvation. I’m on my way.” Then my montage begins, and a voice over I recorded before I left.
“It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you. There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do. I bless the rains down in Africa. Gonna take some time to do the things we never had” Tears started to fill her eyes. “Yasmin, I love you with all of my heart, this experience we have shared together has made me realize, I want to be with you for the rest of my life.” The video then cuts to live footage of the two of us up on top of Mt. Kilimanjaro. I kneel down on one knee, and pull out a small box from my pocket.
“I love you more than the skies of Africa, I love you more than words can even begin to explain.” I open the box, “Yasmin. Will you marry me?”
“YES!” She screamed as the tears fell down her face. I bless the rains down in Africa for giving me my perfect angel, and the rest of our lives start now.
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