Man photographs their home, Earth, using an orbiting machine they made specifically to explore other bodies. Man considers this terrestrial photograph like they would their own animal reflection. The planet is a part of themselves and its meek, blue image is a visual reminder of Man’s own insignificance. Yet Man is enamored all the same. The Earth’s face is a paradisal presentation to the cosmos. We are soft in form, and beautiful, and we can be imagined. See, we are a blessed island in a bleak sea. We can live happily with our backs to the shore, only ever looking in.
♦
A latch clicks open in the midnight desert and a skinless creature scuttles desperately towards the enveloping sky. In its nascent thoughts the creature half-heartedly considers crawling back to the confine. Here it is profoundly alone, shackled to the alien planet, forced to stare up towards a home it cannot even see. But it is a thing of two heads, and the other refuses to submit to its sentence, so it shrieks and it does not stop. It shrieks so loudly and for so long that the other is forced into shrieking too. We shall see if something hears them.
♦
A boy sits on a rooftop with his portable radio. He holds it high above his head and steadies himself, refusing to look down. He stares up and up and hopes to see some of the stars winking back at him. They are playful but vigilant, just like him. They dream rogue dreams like him. A gumnut hits his satellite dish and he jumps, excited for just a moment before he remembers that all-too-familiar sound. The boy recognises that he isn’t looking for just any sign of life. He is looking for support and self-affirmation, for an otherworldly reflection of himself.
About the author
Rue Tunga is a first-generation Sri Lankan-Australian who has just finished up a creative writing degree and is excited to no longer be a student. She is unsure of where to place herself now that she's in the real world. All she's sure of is that she loves to write.