Sand for Water

mirage: (noun) something illusory, without substance or reality.

You are lost in the desert, having wandered for days. Water has run out, and quite frankly, the situation is looking bleak. You know you will perish if you cannot find water quickly. It’s a desperate situation, but its a reality that has befallen you.

Just before you reach the limits of existence, you see something on the horizon. It defies belief- an oasis. You are doubtful, yet a part of you hopes- nay believes, you may have found salvation. You can see water, smell it. Sufficient, though not abundant, it will surely bring you life.

You do everything in your weakened state to reach that glorious patch of salvation. When you arrive, you fall to your knees you reach down, lapping up cups of water with your hands.

After some time of quenching yourself, you pause. Looking down at your hands, you realize the water you have been so eagerly drinking is sand. 

A mirage. The lifeline you beheld was merely optical slight of hand. What do you do now?

In my life, I was lapping up sand, thinking I was drinking cool, clear waters. I choked on the aridity of the sand in my mouth. Cried at the heavens for such trickery. But what next? Crying only dehydrates you more. In real life, how do you move on when you have been so deceived you cannot possibly believe your bad fortune? It happens every day- the one you love reveals a false relationship, a job isn't what is was supposed to be, friends disappear during difficult times, promises are broken. How do you proceed? 

I choose to use the mirage as a boon, a blessing, a reminder. Better things are always to come. Whether by a death or metamorphosis, I like to think that the mirage, though false, has the ability to awaken something deeper, more meaningful. Hope. I will take the mirage for a sign of hope. Belief in things not yet seen. Water will be found, whether in the healing spring of new relationships, the yet unseen opportunity, or the promise of love. This time, I will not choke on the false grains of sands, but I will march forward until I find a deeper well.