Five minute free write - Solitude

Now this one left me hesitating for a lot of reasons.

The moment I saw the prompt, like a thousand ideas sprung to mind. I've been writing a lot of fiction lately for these lovely Five minute free writes brought together by @mariannewest so today I decided to take a different tack. I know I also write a lot about my memories, but usually not under the gun of a timer, so I wanted to try that.

I lived in Japan for a bit over 6 years. I can't even tell you how many random places I visited, crazy things I did, people I met. Thanks to Steemit I finally have a chance to talk about them, get them out, let others see some of the wonder I had the opportunity to witness. You'd be surprised how little people want to hear about amazing. Some see it as bragging, others get jealous, most just don't know what to say and how to identify. Maybe it's just the people I'm around, hehe.

Before I ramble on too much, without further ado...

---

The heavy gusts of wind had finially died down to the occasional breeze.

The sound of thunder was in the distance, but not too far. The clouds, heavy with rain, were dropping their loads across the valley.

From where he sat, perched upon a lonely rock, everything was visible. Atop a mountain, somewhere in the middle of Kyushu island in Japan, the sun was setting. Cold, tired, his heart beat a strong rythm.

The hike had been arduous, unexpectadly long. It was just supposed to be a quick hike, but somehow it had turned into so much more. No real direction, he had just started walking, following the trail, just looking for the next cool overlook.

As the hours had worn on the path had got more severe, but the way forward more enticing than a the trip back. What was around the next bend? Was he almost at the top?

Somewhere along the line it had started to storm.

Alone, hiking on the mountain he refused to give up. His only companion the heavy breathes as he labored upwards.

Sitting at the top, it had all been worth it. It wasn't just the view. It was the accomplishment of having pushed himself further than he thought he could have gone. Having gone through a storm and trusted the weather to turn to something better.

All he had was his pack. In it, a tent, a bit of food, a sleeping bag. Tonight he would be alone, between the twin peaks of this mountain.

Time to think. Time for nature. Time to just be.

---

Why I chose third person I don't know.

Perhaps I wanted you to try and imagine yourself in that place. When you use 'I' I feel it can be off-putting, especially when talking about memories that you want others to experience with you. I know it sounds kind of strange, but it's just a gut feeling I have.

I think I was like 23 or 24 when I hiked up the mountain in Yufuin.

No idea why I did it. Probably just because it was there. I was on a random trip to Kyushu on summer vacation from teaching English. I was in search of hot springs and there were a ton in this area. I believe this place was just around the corner from Beppu, a town famous for just that. The day after I shot this I almost got lost on my way down the mountain, that was a crazy story in itself. And the day after the I ended up walking like 50 or 60 kilometers into the next town...gave me some horrible blisters, but I did it. So many stories to tell, hehe.

Ugh, rambling again. I hope you enjoyed my free write this morning. Travel is the spice of life :)

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