On an Isolated Island

It wasn't easy for Isla to watch her father be taken by death. That image would remain etched in her memory, something that time and events could never erase. Isla hadn't suffered much from the loss of her mother because she hadn't spent her life with her. She hadn't lived with her, seeing her day after day, since the moment she opened her eyes, as she had with her father. Her father, who had stayed up many nights by her side when she was ill, showering her with his tenderness and love. How many times had he sat by her bed telling her captivating stories—stories of Beauty and the Beast, of the orphan Snow White. Surely, she would never forget that radiant face, filled with love and life.

She had loved her father to the extent that he became everything to her—safety, hope, and the future. How could all those dreams shatter in a single breath? How could her father, who had once been so full of life, turn into a lifeless body, unresponsive to her calls? Life continues to deceive us, making us believe that nothing can ever separate us from those we love. Yet, before we even realize it, life surprises us with what it has planned for us in an instant. And so, the most beautiful part of us dies, but still, we continue, perhaps to fulfill a dream that had once grown alongside the one we lost.

Isla would continue to live. Now, the only thing that mattered to her was to follow in her father's footsteps in research and exploration, so that his discoveries wouldn't be left to die. Though he had asked her to go live with her mother's family, she would honor his request but would return without a doubt to continue the work he had nearly completed—those important discoveries he had always spoken to her about. She wouldn't let his dreams remain in limbo. She would set them free.

She rose from where she sat, determined to become someone else—someone who would not succumb to despair. She would become like her father. For what dies behind leaves those who love it to carry it forward. Her father could rest easy in his grave, knowing that his efforts had not been in vain. Isla was determined to follow his path. This was what she repeated to herself, full of ambition and hope that tomorrow would be brighter.