🎧 Listen as Natasha recalls this final morning by the ocean…
Day 4 in Bali
Morning Reflections — Our Connection
The beach was still half-asleep, a thin veil of mist rising from the sand. Natasha pulled her shawl a little tighter around her shoulders, the morning air cool and damp with salt. She could hear the ocean breathing, slow and even, like the island itself hadn’t yet decided to wake.
She saw him then — Alex — standing near the waterline, camera in hand, the first hints of dawn tracing the horizon behind him. He turned as she approached, his expression caught somewhere between surprise and a smile.
“You’re early,” he said, brushing a hand through his hair.
“Couldn’t sleep,” she replied. “Didn’t want to miss it.”
The silence, then knowing
For a moment, neither knew what to do with the space between them. The surf filled the silence. Then he nodded toward the rocks ahead. “There’s a spot over there — you can see the light break across the whole bay.”
She followed him, the sand cool beneath her feet, their shadows long and uncertain in the dim blue light. It wasn’t awkward so much as fragile, like something that might dissolve if they spoke too loudly.
When they reached the ocean’s edge, the world was beginning to blush — the first gold rays of sunlight stretching over the sea. She glanced at him, and he at her, and neither said a word. It was enough just to be there, waiting for the sun to arrive.
They Walked and Talked
As the sun lifted, they walked along the beach, their footprints weaving together and apart. He told her stories about his travels, the people he’d photographed, the places he’d left behind. She listened, smiling, letting the rhythm of his voice blend with the waves.
“You see the light differently,” he said at one point, glancing at her. “Like you’re not just looking at it — you’re remembering it.”
She laughed softly. “Maybe I am.”
She was suddenly overwhelmed by his beautiful poetic speech which came with a relaxing, and calming energy.
She reached out to touch his hand, and knew it was meant to be..
