Message in a Bottle -by Anumita Das

To whom it may concern...

To whom it may concern:

            I’m not stranded on an island, and I’m not in a burning building. I’m not in mortal danger, not in excruciating pain. And that is my pain. I realize you are disappointed- you, some little boy in Greece, or elderly woman in Australia. You were hoping to hear about some little girl in distress, who is fighting for her life and you, you alone, could save her. Perhaps there’s some secret club I don’t know about. All the people that write bottled letters get together and find ways to distress themselves, and then sugar-coat their own blood. Maybe it’s right in front of me. Maybe I’ve had a blindfold on this whole time, shielding me from the sunset’s amber rays. If only I could catch one. Catch it in a jar and let it trickle down my throat whenever I need the taste. But what if it burns? Or blinds? You, you have probably abandoned this letter by now. It must be back in the bottle, back in the sea, sailing to the next person who’s stupid enough to pick it up. How ironic! For I have just realized, I am stranded, I am burning, I am in mortal danger, for I will never be in excruciating pain.