Gold

As I rise from the folds of the mountains, taking in my first glimpse of the world around me, I can’t help but feel a sense of melancholic wonder. The sky is a deep, rich blue, empty and lonely in the early morning hours. And yet, despite the cold that surrounds me, there is a sense of beauty here, a sense of awe that fills me as I take in the stunning vistas before me. 

I am adorned in a crown of frozen gold, a dripping mask that covers my face and gives me the appearance of a queen. But in truth, I am just a woman, standing here, taking in the beauty of the natural world. It’s like MDMA, all around me, a world full of wonder and magic. 

But as I stand here, lost in my own reverie, I am suddenly reminded of another reality. A computer screen flashes before me, the Windows 98 error dialogue box appearing before my eyes. “It’s Cold Outside. Go Back to Sleep?”, it reads. And as I move the cursor towards the “OK” button, I am struck by a sense of sadness. 

For in this moment, I am no longer just a woman standing here, marveling at the beauty of the world. I am also the stoner, lying in bed, staring at my wallpaper, lost in the haze of a cold and lonely morning. The mountains are my blankets, the error message a reminder of the outside world, waiting for me to return to it. 

But as I click “OK” and drift back into sleep, I can’t help but wonder – is this all there is to life? A never-ending cycle of cold mornings and error messages, of beauty and despair? Or is there something more waiting for us, beyond the screen and the blankets, beyond the mountains and the sky?