Excerpt: A Diary Of Madness

Eventually I was tired of the pub and left. I lit a cigarette and the lighter flashed brightly for a moment, illuminating my face to the world. I breathed in the smoke and savoured it before exhaling.

I went for a walk to a nearby park. The grass crunched softly beneath my feet. The moon above was brightly glowing – it was a full moon on a cloudless night.

At night, the world takes on a different look. It suddenly becomes mysterious and foreboding, as though the night is holding secrets in its silence. The trees became sentinels, their branches became their warding arms that they raise defiantly at the sky. I looked at the shadows and they glared back me, daring me to challenge their existence.

I dared not, but continued walking until I saw a rose bush.

In the dim blue moonlight, the red rose had been rendered a hue of purple. It glanced back at me invitingly, its petals like welcoming arms. I knelt down and sniffed – and I found myself being plunged into a kaleidoscope of colours and aromas. In my mind, I was engulfed by a shifting rainbow which snaked around my mind and into my soul.

I closed my eyes and allowed myself to fall into the colours.

Falling into the colours was a surprisingly calm sensation. I felt as though I was floating away from my body. I loved the sensation.

I opened my eyes and continued my way.