The way to a higher being is to experience life on many levels, to let go of all the troubles and the past aches, the ego, the self-pity, and, mostly, to let go of any fear that has haunted us. It is all perfect to work on one's state of mind and live a relatively happy life with a positive attitude. Still, there is no denying that certain recreational drugs enhance feelings and, to a certain extent, give us an out-of-body experience.
Please let me be clear, I am not in any way promoting the notion or encouraging anyone to take drugs of any sort. But we live in a world where the consumption of cannabis, for example, has been legalised to some extent for medical and recreational use, of course. Yet, psychiatric wards are filling up with young patients suffering from schizophrenia due to the consumption of skunk (a chemical method of growing marijuana).
The latest form of enjoying substances is called 'micro-dosing'. Essentially, it involves taking drugs in tiny quantities instead of abusing them, using the substance, literally, for recreational purposes, a buzz. Then again, the word abuse is questionable.
I was holidaying on an island in the Persian Gulf with some girlfriends. There are sites on the island of Qeshm that reminded me of the Grand Canyon but in a sandy-coloured tone as opposed to red. There were salt caves and long beaches with no one in sight. The place had an air of magic, although we had yet to reach the main town and shopping area.
Instead, one day, we took a fifteen-minute ride in a motorboat, mostly owned by fishermen, to cross to the next smaller island. The sun shone in a literally unfiltered blue sky, and the winter temperatures were no higher than 24/25 degrees centigrade at midday.
Huey instructed us to approach a stall on the beach and ask for directions where someone would pick us up and drive us to him. It was all confusing at the time, but it worked out well. I sat in the front seat, next to our friendly driver, while the girls sat at the back. The scenery was, again, something out of a Western movie; unreal. The driver pointed out the sparkles through the sand in some areas, which shone through to our hearts.
After a short drive, he stopped, and Huey appeared from the middle of two rocks to greet us. His smile was pleasant and welcoming, the kind you can trust at first sight. We chit-chatted as we followed him to the campsite, where a fire was lit, surrounded by a girl and three other fellows. Everyone was super-friendly, and we felt their warmth as much as the fire, which was mainly used for cooking, just after midday.
After an introductory chapter, the three of us girls, with Huey and his close friend, Bobby, decided to go on a long hike after taking a micro-dose of LSD. The walk, which, according to Huey, was meant to take fifteen minutes, lasted over an hour. But the scenery was mesmerising, and the company was great fun. We finally reached a rocky bay with a sandy beach in between and decided to go for a swim. The water of the Gulf was too chilly in January, so we partially set foot in the sea while my sense of humour was warming up.
Our roars of laughter must have reached the angels in heaven above, as there was no other soul in sight. We felt hungry and thirsty in a short time, as we began to realise we had made the trip quite unprepared. We were in the middle of nowhere! As we discussed where to source refreshments, a figure appeared on the rock. It was a young man, rocking the look of a Red Indian, fit, tanned and with black straight shoulder-length hair.
"Hello!" he said with a friendly smile. I could hear your laughter in the distance, so I came over to invite you all to our campsite for a bite to eat."
Totally gob-smacked, we stared at him in disbelief. So, I asked:
"Did you just fall from the sky?!"
He answered without hesitation:
"No! I came from the back of that mountain," he said, Pointing to the mountain range in the distance.
We all laughed.
The green-eyed man then continued: "Please come join us. We'll be waiting for you."
And he walked back towards where he had pointed out earlier.
We looked at each other, and as the crew was wondering what to do next, I intervened:
"C'mon, guys. Our host insisted we join them for lunch. I'm starving. Let's go. Quick!"
We soon made our way to the spot indicated to us and came across three guys who stood up in our presence to introduce themselves. Later on, we named them 'Jesus', 'Moses' and 'Ibrahim', simply because they might as well have been those characters.
The boys sat on a rock and offered us, girls, a seat that I just have to describe: Two large, evenly cut rocks, one as a seat, like in a sofa, and the other as the back. They were covered by a sarong-like fabric with a stack of rocks in front, dressed with a piece of cloth as a table would be. When I asked innocently, "This setting is unbelievable! You don't happen to have any issues here. Do you?"
Guess what? One of the boys lifted the edge of the textile and brought out a box of tissues. Seriously?!
A large pan of rice with soya was cooking on the fire next to the table. Jesus, the guy who had first approached us on the beach, had made it. He served the food on plates while chatting with us.
Moses had light brown dreadlocks with hints of blonde; a very original face, like a character in a Hollywood Western, with haunting blue eyes; and, last, Ibrahim was a picture from a Persian miniature. Now I can't say whether it was merely the effect of the LSD but these guys were drop-dead gorgeous! In any state, they were also super-friendly, and we laughed well with them, though our appetite had disappeared due to much excitement.
Although the girls insisted we should make our way back, I could not possibly agree with them: "Leave! Leave where? We're in heaven. Where else does one go after heaven?"
One of the girls then asked: "I hope we haven't died and gone to heaven!"
I replied, "It sure seems that way. But oh no! I've got to go back to Earth. There's much to do before I leave."
After an enjoyable time (no idea how long), we left the three heavenly creatures and followed Huey to another bay to watch the sunset. The smooth rocks on the sandy beach were covered with algae. They looked like deep green velvet seats to enjoy the magical sunset. Simply amazing!
Huey informed us of the time and said we had to return to their campsite and decide when to leave before the last boat ride. Walking back after an unbelievable journey, we mentioned how much we'd like a hot drink; some tea. As we climbed the rocks to get back, the girl in her army uniform outfit whom we'd met earlier surfaced with a flask!
She said: "I thought you'd be back around this time, so I got you a hot drink."
"Don't tell me you got us some tea?! Did you?" I inquired sceptically.
"No," was her answer immediately. "I got you some cappuccino!"
"Cappu-fucking-ccino?" I asked in disbelief.
Indeed, she had brought us just that, a cappuccino in a flask. We could not have felt luckier.
We gathered around the campfire, which had been kept alive in our absence and was now glowing at full strength, and drank tea while discussing our return. I butted in as usual...
"I ain't going anywhere now! I'm certainly not ready to return to reality. We'll just have to camp here, I guess."
The girls were in agreement, although we had turned up in swimsuits covered with long cotton dresses and shawls. We were not in any way ready for a cold night of camping, which would have been a first for me. But what to do?
As darkness fell, the stars twinkled with the glory I had never experienced. We kept singing 'Twinkle twinkle little star' just like contented children. Hunger struck again when another good-looking character appeared with a sack hanging from a branch on his shoulder. Sobhan was his name. The boys greeted him as he introduced himself and sat by the fire beside me, lying on the solid ground, my head supported by a beach bag. My gaze drifted from the stars to Sobhan's face, lit by fire, while he swiftly peeled potatoes with a Swiss knife. I literally had to pinch myself to know this was a reality. He fried the potatoes in onion and garlic and made another pan of rice on the other side of the fire with Turkish coffee coming to a boil next to the different pots.
Before food was served, Huey suggested we walk to the beach to watch the plankton in the sea. Sobhan kindly held my arm as our tired legs stepped towards the Gulf—yet another unimaginable sight!
Under the velvety indigo sky,
The twinkle of the stars made me wanna fly.
A deep blue sea may as well have been dry,
By the plankton gleaming. Oh my!
Don't take me anywhere, don't even try,
'Coz it's here, I wanna die.
The air was getting colder by the hour, and Bobby, who had gallantly carried my heavy beach bag all day, offered us his thick jumpers and socks and their tent. While we all scattered around the fire and everyone fell asleep, at 03:17am, while I stared into the sky, a shooting star flew right above me, sparkling all the way.
Magic follows you when you seek it. The experience confirmed that your every wish becomes a reality when you're in a good place.
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