3. Heartbreak

It was the sound of shattering glass. It was the vocals of a broken singer. It was the heart-wrenching melody of a violin. It was the painful sensation of heartbreak - a fabric of one’s being torn into pieces within an instant.

The protective bindings of love were ripped away with a single claw of betrayal, violently exposing delicateness to the harsh reality. Black covers barely shielded naked skin from those tearful green eyes, as an equally bare arm sought to redeem its mistress. At the touch of those tainted hands, a chill travelled down her spine instead of the usual warmth and love, and all was lost.

She flinched from the touch.

It was broken glass. It was agony. It was the beauty of imperfection.

Heartbreak.

2. Serenity

The landscape was painted a picture of calm. Rows upon rows of oak trees surrounded the tranquil lake like guardians of a sacred place, silently waiting for the chosen one to arrive. The cloudless sky reflected on the water surface, casting an ethereal blueness in that small pool. The white beaches and fine sand of the perched lake cast beautiful imagery upon the picture; it was a dish waiting to be savoured by those with a keen eye and a camera. Such was the serenity of a paradise on Earth.

Darkness loomed in every inch of the space, and there was no wind to speak of. In this void, little was left but an occasional meteorite floating past an arbitrary planet. Great was the distance away from the universe’s star, but warmth and light still lingered on the coarse, exposed surface of random objects, bathing them in a different form of endearment. Time was incessant here – deadlines and the hustle-bustle of modern living were absent, replaced by the continuous flow of gases and liquids on these magnificent giants. Space was the paradise beyond Earth, the mixture of peace and unknown danger highlighting the calmness before storm; serenity in its best moment.

1. Tragedy

Amidst the chaos, a single girl crawled out from a loose pile of rocks some distance away, clutching tightly to her torn teddy bear as she stared at the landscape before her. A mixture of shock and pain crossed her young features as comprehension slowly set in. That fateful instant, with her head tilted to the heavens and tears rolling down her dirty cheeks, she realized that she was now truly alone in this world.

There were screams everywhere, and the fallen rubble was aflame. The buildings that once stood magnificently in the city were reduced to a pathetic state; where there had been colors, it all became grey. Even the weather was mourning - the onslaught of rain and darkened skies terrible to one who had just lost a loved one to the earthquake. There was no joy.

It was supposed to be Christmas on this day, a season of laughter and giving.

As if the heavens were playing a sick joke to the civilians, the area most brutalized by the disaster seemed like an overgrown Christmas tree from a bird’s eye view. The destruction was akin to the dark needles of the Christmas pine, and the blinking red and blue lights of the auxiliary vehicles reflected cheerful bulbs adorning that particular tree in joy. Like an artist’s finest moment, the final brushstroke of fear was made with longing and regret as the earth finally grumbled and stilled moments later. Sweat on the backs of the anxious rescue teams mingled with the gently pelting rain as they dug through mud and stone for survivors, many of whom had died with little suffering.

Footprints of loss and pain etched deep in their souls and hearts, it was the survivors who faced the aftermath - the real tragedy.