A warm beach location toward evening. The beach is wide and has some places where it is a bit elevated with some rocky outcrops that push out into the ocean. The sky is a patch of color: deep sunset-orange and there are dark clouds here and there, lonely shadows in the sky, and beyond, all around, the patch fades into a void, into space. There is no sun. It’s an island at the edge of—well, everything. I know that getting back home will be impossible. I feel so overwhelmingly, resolutely, distant from any place or anyone I know. But I’m not alone here. Dark figures in black robes idle all around the beach, some huddling together in small groups, some alone, some wandering and others staring at the ocean. I think they are like me. I must also be wearing a black robe. This place elicits a feeling. We are on the verge of becoming irretrievably lost, we are all trying to accept the fact.
I am paralyzed by the otherworldly nature of this beach at the edge of space. Beautiful. Eternal and absolute. I can never find my way back. I’ll be leaving soon.

…

Alexei Raymond chases visions of unspeakable loveliness from a world lost. An ardent fan of insects, monkeys, and rabbits.