Sweat dripping down my face, my calves burn with each step. I have walked this dirt path countless times and yet the climb never gets easier, only hotter. I poor the rest of the water on my head trying to cool down but to no avail I am still dry as the desert. My lips are blistered and cracked, the sunburn along my arms screams a beautiful cherry red, and the incline makes it that much harder to breath. A few more steps and I will have arrived. "Come on, just a few more steps Pricilla". I push up and over the last rock as my feet land in soft brown mud, I made it. .
I have never seen anything so surreal. The sun is about to set and I will be the only one to basque in it's luminous rays. My eyes scan the water, it is clear in the shallow parts revealing all the rocks and weeds growing. Then mid way it turns into a blue as dark as the ocean, it is then that I am transfixed and elevated into a world where there are no worries. I lay my pack on one of the rocks, slip off my shoes, and toss my t-shirt and shorts aside. "I missed you, Lake Mary" before diving in with a splash. Yes, there are plenty of signs that say "No Swimming Allowed" and "Trespassers Will be Fined" all around the premisses, but I can't help it. Lake Mary is my favorite place to be, and the lake is always calling me for a swim. Which is why I hike up there on days it's most unlikely for other people to be around. Most of the time I am alone, which some people would find creepy, but I love it. There's beauty in the silence, which is pretty much unattainable when you go with friends, so I like to go alone. I feel the reason why I find this place so special is because I feel safe, just like my attic does. Although they both bring me a great sense of security, they both leave me with a different sense of safety. My attic gives me a cozy feeling like I am hidden from everyone and the world when I need it.