That day, I heard an island.

 

That day, I heard an island.

 

How should I describe this island?

Just a plain island. Tiny, close to the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh in eastern Scotland. The island is uninhabited, it belongs to no one, it doesn't have to fulfill any responsibilities or obligations, and it doesn't have to please anyone. It just quietly immerses itself in its own world. You could say that the island is completely its own. It is beautiful and grave, standing alone in the turquoise waters, humming its own song alone.

 

How can I describe this island?

I think this island must have its own temperament, so it isolates itself with the changing tides. But occasionally it wants to hear the outside world, so it will occasionally let the tide recede secretly, exposing the pathway to the island so that people can come to his world.

 

The time of day it opens its heart to the outside world is variable, I guess it may have something to do with its mood. I was once rejected by it, and when I arrived at the beach, it did not welcome me and angrily raised the tide very high.

 

I became extremely curious about this island of personality.

 

When I finally set foot on the island for the first time ---- passed through the long corridor of stone pillars, like a passage to another world.

 

I saw the island with my ears

 

My ears fell in love with the island before I did. I'm pretty sure of it.

 

I grew up as a very sensitive person to sound, and I have a very sensitive ear, which allows me to always pick up on many subtle sounds and clearly distinguish between different sounds. And probably because my mother was a music teacher, I also have extra love for music. According to her, I seemed to be able to distinguish the different scales of the piano even before I could walk (or maybe because every mother thinks her child is the most special), so my mother started looking for a piano teacher for me when I was still in kindergarten, hoping that I would be able to shine in music with my talent for sound sensitivity.

Unfortunately, I gave up piano lessons after years of tedious training, something I still regret to this day.

 

Being sensitive to sound, I am pretty sure my ear fell in love with that island.

 

I think it must have felt that the world is too loud and noisy nowadays, so it chose to isolate itself. I sometimes feel envious of him.

Living in the city always involves a lot of noise pollution, and how fortunate it is to come across such an island today, when noise pollution is already extremely serious.

On the steep piles of rocks stacked on top of each other, I hear the waves lapping the rocks, and in the bushy mountains I hear the leaves rubbing against each other, and they murmur to each other as if telling some secret. I like to lie on the grass high up on the island, quietly listening to the wind blowing through the grass, blowing leaves, a few seagulls occasionally flying across the sky arguing with each other, I just lie on the soft grass, eyes closed, greedily listening to the grass and trees on this island, free to breathe heavily, as if merging with this island. I thought, if I could become a stone on this island, it should also be a happy thing. My heart was truly at peace, and no matter how much stress and unhappiness I had in the city, I was completely healed by the sound of the island in an instant. This is why every time when I leave from the island I am happier than before I came. The sound of this island can heal me.

 

When I listen to the sound of the island with my eyes closed, I don't know why I always think of the days when I was studying piano, maybe the sound of the waves lapping against the rocks reminds me of the Turkish march, (about why the Turkish march because it took me a long time to be able to play it fluently when I was practicing piano, so I was very impressed), or if I don't know why I thought of this, but I'm a person who likes to think in a whimsical way.

 

I like to listen to the sounds of the island while collecting strange stones and shells on the beach, I like to collect these natural artworks. I think that since these works of art come from this magical island, they must also have a unique island sound on them. I think there might really be a genie on this island, otherwise how can an ordinary island have so many fascinating sounds.

 

I want to record this island forever, I want to let it be fixed in my memory, and can always give me comfort when I am restless and anxious. I decided to turn everything on this island into a score that I could understand, a graphic score that belonged to me alone.

 

During my expedition to the island I accidentally left the bracelet my grandmother had been wearing before she died on the island, and when I returned to the island to look for it again after the tide had risen and fallen, there was no trace of it. Maybe my grandmother also fell in love with the island and wanted to stay here to listen, or maybe it was picked up by the island spirit, I comforted myself with this.

 

I would like to tell you about the island in words, but unfortunately I see it through my ears, so you may not know what I am talking about, nor can you feel the bare earth and rock, the green grass, or hear the vibrant sounds through my descriptions. I can't touch the sound of the heartbeat. I just want to record it, it's not just a work for me, it's also a trip to heal my soul.

 

That day, I heard an island.

 

 

Wenya Cai

2022, 8, 5