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- Story Listed as: Fiction For Adults
- Theme: Science Fiction
- Subject: History / Historical
- Published: 12/28/2019
Sandy straddled her surfboard in the pink and orange dawn off the shore of Da Nang and made a monumental decision. The tang of wind, the colors of the morning and the warm, salty rhythm of the South China Sea brought clarity to her alien mind. She would never leave Earth.
It had been a decade - in Terran time - since Sandy and a group of historians travelled multiple universes to a country called Vietnam on a planet called Earth. It was in that precise location where a historical event unfolded that would perplex even the leading minds of her advanced scientific community. And Sandy, formerly known as Silicametalloid14, was the first on her planet to witness it.
In her research as an historian of inferior planetary societies, Sandy had been reviewing crude footage of a much-studied, but still very curious human activity. One that seemed to happen throughout the Earthlings' relatively short history: war.
Sandy's home world was silicon-based and looked every inch of it. Dry, motionless, rocky, gray. Birth and death were not part of life. It was simply existence and non-existence. All activity, including technology and communication, was peaceful and telepathic. War had no foothold on her planet, but Sandy found it interesting from a historical perspective. The same with Terran entertainment. There was no chess, no Minecraft. No music or dance. And there certainly was no surfing on her planet that had not a single drop of water on it.
Nevertheless, the concept of war and the concept of entertainment were understood by Sandy and her fellow academicians. The problem was that the event that she had witnessed on the recording had combined the two and presented a paradox that was just astonishing to her: humans having fun by surfing while aircraft strafed the beach and napalm engulfed the jungle. In all her studies of war on the planet Earth, Sandy had never encountered humans entertaining themselves during battles. She had recalled a time during a war the Earthlings called World War One when the fighting sides had agreed to lay down their arms and celebrated together one day in December. But these incidents of laughter and joy amidst death and destruction during the Vietnam War was something that needed further research for greater understanding. Sandy had telepathically approached the Council to request permission to take a historical research team to Earth. It had been granted.
Adjusting to a carbon-based and newly bio-engineered human lifeform had been difficult for Sandy but more so for her team. Upon arriving on Earth, she had been the only one to immediately take up surfing. Sandy had determined that sudden exposure to the foreign elements of water, movement and wind would acclimatize her more quickly and allow her to more profoundly engage in her research activities in Vietnam. In her haste however, Sandy had miscalculated the replenishment schedule of her new human body and had nearly drowned. The frightening incident had resulted with her new name, though.
Sandy had spent the entire first three days in the water while her team sought accommodations for their lab and quarters. She had just mastered standing up on the surfboard when she felt an extraordinary weakness throughout her newly acquired humanoid form. Food! Sandy had forgotten to eat as all humans must. She activated the bio-emergency reserves in her body which allowed her to slowly paddle ashore. Wobbly and in desperation, Sandy fell onto the beach of Da Nang, rolled in the warm sand, covering every square inch of her human form in its silicon-based nourishment, and passed out. When she came to, she was lying in a trough of sand, shrouded in it and a group of surfers had gathered in support of one of their own. Apparently, the surfing community was an empathetic one. "Girl, you've been out there for days," one said. "You got the heart, babe, but you got to eat," said another. Finally, one called out, "Hey Sandy!" She had seen this particular surfer dominating the dangerous wind-driven waves further offshore. Obviously, he was a champion of sorts. He added, "Grub up and rest. Meet us out here at dawn. I'll get you up on those waves."
The seasoned surfer had kept his promise and more. Sandy went on to become an admired dare-devil surfer as she and her team continued their research into what their home world had termed 'The Surf War Paradox'. Throughout their ten year scientific service on Earth, Sandy and her team transmitted vast amounts of findings and data. In return, they continued to receive instructions specific to time and project completion. Sandy felt rushed. Her team felt relieved. They were sick of this unusually colorful and active carbon-based planet.
For Sandy, there was so much more to study. And to experience. And to live. The Surf War Paradox was proof. She had dug up a quote from one of the surfing soldiers of Vietnam whose unit was under constant mortar assault and heavy artillery attack:
"I was in the water when this huge round hit. A huge fountain of water erupted. Surfing just helped you deal with the war. All you have to do is swim beyond the break line and you’re in total solitude. You turn inward and it gives you a wonderful sense of serenity that nothing else can give you." - Bruce Blandy, enlisted U.S. Navy, Vietnam War Veteran
If humans can find surf and serenity surrounded by war, Sandy reasoned, they have a most unique ability to find joy in sadness; light in darkness. This world was the one she yearned to live in. To thrive in. She had received the communique demanding her team's return to the home world, but her decision was made.
Sandy shielded her eyes from the rising sun as she watched the approaching surfer paddle his board toward hers. In the ten years since she met the human who called her 'Sandy' and who helped perfect her surfing skills, she had come to love him. Yet another unusual human activity: love. She shrugged imperceptibly. She was Earth-ready.
Sandy leaned over the small watery space between their surfboards and kissed her human love. She was very pleased with her decision.
Catch a wave and you're sitting on top of the world - Beach Boys, Earth, USA, circa 1960s
Surfing In Vietnam(Martha Huett)
Sandy straddled her surfboard in the pink and orange dawn off the shore of Da Nang and made a monumental decision. The tang of wind, the colors of the morning and the warm, salty rhythm of the South China Sea brought clarity to her alien mind. She would never leave Earth.
It had been a decade - in Terran time - since Sandy and a group of historians travelled multiple universes to a country called Vietnam on a planet called Earth. It was in that precise location where a historical event unfolded that would perplex even the leading minds of her advanced scientific community. And Sandy, formerly known as Silicametalloid14, was the first on her planet to witness it.
In her research as an historian of inferior planetary societies, Sandy had been reviewing crude footage of a much-studied, but still very curious human activity. One that seemed to happen throughout the Earthlings' relatively short history: war.
Sandy's home world was silicon-based and looked every inch of it. Dry, motionless, rocky, gray. Birth and death were not part of life. It was simply existence and non-existence. All activity, including technology and communication, was peaceful and telepathic. War had no foothold on her planet, but Sandy found it interesting from a historical perspective. The same with Terran entertainment. There was no chess, no Minecraft. No music or dance. And there certainly was no surfing on her planet that had not a single drop of water on it.
Nevertheless, the concept of war and the concept of entertainment were understood by Sandy and her fellow academicians. The problem was that the event that she had witnessed on the recording had combined the two and presented a paradox that was just astonishing to her: humans having fun by surfing while aircraft strafed the beach and napalm engulfed the jungle. In all her studies of war on the planet Earth, Sandy had never encountered humans entertaining themselves during battles. She had recalled a time during a war the Earthlings called World War One when the fighting sides had agreed to lay down their arms and celebrated together one day in December. But these incidents of laughter and joy amidst death and destruction during the Vietnam War was something that needed further research for greater understanding. Sandy had telepathically approached the Council to request permission to take a historical research team to Earth. It had been granted.
Adjusting to a carbon-based and newly bio-engineered human lifeform had been difficult for Sandy but more so for her team. Upon arriving on Earth, she had been the only one to immediately take up surfing. Sandy had determined that sudden exposure to the foreign elements of water, movement and wind would acclimatize her more quickly and allow her to more profoundly engage in her research activities in Vietnam. In her haste however, Sandy had miscalculated the replenishment schedule of her new human body and had nearly drowned. The frightening incident had resulted with her new name, though.
Sandy had spent the entire first three days in the water while her team sought accommodations for their lab and quarters. She had just mastered standing up on the surfboard when she felt an extraordinary weakness throughout her newly acquired humanoid form. Food! Sandy had forgotten to eat as all humans must. She activated the bio-emergency reserves in her body which allowed her to slowly paddle ashore. Wobbly and in desperation, Sandy fell onto the beach of Da Nang, rolled in the warm sand, covering every square inch of her human form in its silicon-based nourishment, and passed out. When she came to, she was lying in a trough of sand, shrouded in it and a group of surfers had gathered in support of one of their own. Apparently, the surfing community was an empathetic one. "Girl, you've been out there for days," one said. "You got the heart, babe, but you got to eat," said another. Finally, one called out, "Hey Sandy!" She had seen this particular surfer dominating the dangerous wind-driven waves further offshore. Obviously, he was a champion of sorts. He added, "Grub up and rest. Meet us out here at dawn. I'll get you up on those waves."
The seasoned surfer had kept his promise and more. Sandy went on to become an admired dare-devil surfer as she and her team continued their research into what their home world had termed 'The Surf War Paradox'. Throughout their ten year scientific service on Earth, Sandy and her team transmitted vast amounts of findings and data. In return, they continued to receive instructions specific to time and project completion. Sandy felt rushed. Her team felt relieved. They were sick of this unusually colorful and active carbon-based planet.
For Sandy, there was so much more to study. And to experience. And to live. The Surf War Paradox was proof. She had dug up a quote from one of the surfing soldiers of Vietnam whose unit was under constant mortar assault and heavy artillery attack:
"I was in the water when this huge round hit. A huge fountain of water erupted. Surfing just helped you deal with the war. All you have to do is swim beyond the break line and you’re in total solitude. You turn inward and it gives you a wonderful sense of serenity that nothing else can give you." - Bruce Blandy, enlisted U.S. Navy, Vietnam War Veteran
If humans can find surf and serenity surrounded by war, Sandy reasoned, they have a most unique ability to find joy in sadness; light in darkness. This world was the one she yearned to live in. To thrive in. She had received the communique demanding her team's return to the home world, but her decision was made.
Sandy shielded her eyes from the rising sun as she watched the approaching surfer paddle his board toward hers. In the ten years since she met the human who called her 'Sandy' and who helped perfect her surfing skills, she had come to love him. Yet another unusual human activity: love. She shrugged imperceptibly. She was Earth-ready.
Sandy leaned over the small watery space between their surfboards and kissed her human love. She was very pleased with her decision.
Catch a wave and you're sitting on top of the world - Beach Boys, Earth, USA, circa 1960s
Help Us Understand What's Happening
JD
12/31/2019Yes, it was fitting.
I'm glad that you appreciate Storystar. THANK YOU for saying so, and for your many contributions to it...
Happy New Year to you and yours, Martha.
Help Us Understand What's Happening
Martha Huett
12/30/2019Thanks, Jd. I was delighted that there was a History/Historical sub-category for Science Fiction. It seemed to fit this story. I really appreciate StoryStar. :)
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