SYBIL

On a gray, dreary November morning, I looked out the window as I drank my coffee. The wind was blowing and cold. Winter was coming upon us much sooner than usual.

My laptop was open, but I couldn’t think of a single word to write.

My thoughts drifted off to sunny, warmer days. I was at the beach listening to the sound of the waves. The meditative repetition took me away from this hopeless day. I was sitting near the ocean drinking my coffee, no longer in this god-forsaken bleakness of early winter. I looked out to the water and could see a young girl in a yellow swimming suit jumping in the waves.

I sat there wondering if I had made it all up?

My first experience with water was on summer vacations with my parents. We always went to the ocean. There was a resort hotel that was our favorite.

I would spend endless hours at the beach building castles. My parents would use those same hours at the pool bar. More often than not, I was alone. I was given strict instruction not to go into the water without them.

“That’s beautiful.”

I looked up and squinted against the sun. There stood a young woman in a yellow bathing suit.

“You’re doing a good job,” she added.

“Thanks.” I kept working.

The young woman sat next to me. “It’s a beautiful day, don’t you think?”

“Sure,” I replied.

“On a day like this, anything can happen. I suppose that you know that?”

I shook my head, indicating no.

“Sometimes,” she continued, “You can even see fish jumping out of the water. And, you know what?”

Again, I shook my head in a negative response.

“If you go out into the water, you can see the most unusual kinds of fish. I was just heading out myself. Would you like to join me?”

Again without a word, I indicated no with the shake of my head.

“Suit yourself. It’s a perfect day for this. I will tell you later what I saw.”

With that, she grabbed her air mattress and headed towards the water. I wanted desperately to follow, but I didn’t. I had my instructions.

But nobody said that I couldn’t talk to strangers.

Chapter 1

Benjamin,

an introduction

Benjamin. That’s me. It is difficult to know where to start. There is nothing particularly special about me. Certainly nothing extraordinary. I was your average academic. Not particularly interesting at parties. Could only talk about the latest author I had read. I was an English professor at a small college. Not the next great American writer, as I had hoped. I struggled with my mediocrity.

I always have been drawn to books. It seemed only natural that I should major in English in college. What else would I do? As a child, books often came alive for me. I had an active imagination. Reality had always been a little fuzzy for me. In fact, I cannot guarantee the truth about what actually happened. Reality had always been a little fuzzy for me. In fact, I cannot guarantee the truth about what actually happened.