otherworldly

“It feels like we are not alone!” I softly choke, my voice taking on a new tone I haven’t heard before. He nods. “How many beings are there in here?” He says aloud. “Four”.

Nick was sitting in bed next to me, laptop out.

“I’ve found an ancient cave 30 minutes drive from here we could go to…?” he said glancing over at me questioningly, dark salt and pepper hair flopping over his right soft brown eye.

He has this washed-up British rockstar quality about him.

A little bit sad and mournful as if he’d lived a whole life and then some before we met. His face speaks to the complexities of human existence and adds layers of mysticism and romanticism to him.

Maybe I do have a type?

I smile over at him from where I’m making pancakes in the kitchen corner of the little caravan we rented from AirBnB on someone’s secluded property in the hinterland of the Jurassic Coast.

We are on our first road trip together.

Five romantic days exploring the southwest coast of the UK.

“Let’s go,” I reply, handing him a hot pancake on a plate drizzled with maple syrup.

☾

The drive over is spectacular.

We pass jungle and misty seaside villages and steep cliffs overlooking the English Channel.

I had turned our navigation system onto ‘unicorn voice’ hoping it would give us some magical details on our journey, but mostly it was just an annoying high-pitched squeaky voice saying “At the roundabout, take the second exit” I soon turned off.

We parked, had a glance around and then followed the map into the jungle. There was no real path. We reached a stone edge, but no cave. “Maybe we have to go around the other side,” he suggested.

Clambering past oak trees, vines, woodland, undergrowth and spikey blackberry bushes further into the forest we reach a fallen tree and just beyond it we glimpse an enormous cavern. Excited I moved towards it and then waited.

I wanted us to see it all for the first time together.

The cave reaches almost two stories at its highest point. It’s damp, the inside etched into ridges from centuries of water running along its limestone walls. According to Wikipedia, the cave has been used for shelter by humans since the Bronze Age.

We look around.

We had planned to hold a little ceremonial ritual here. An invitation to the spirit world to bless our romantic union. It was his idea.

This is why I love this man.

It’s like I’m hanging out with my witchy best girlfriend, except he’s a man with a great jawline and a penis. And the sex is *chefs kiss* great.

☾

There is a small ledge, relatively dry, on the upper left-hand side of the cave.

Speaking intentions, we slowly place items around a small candle that is burning.

Tea leaves from our very first meeting. Rose petals and apples I found on our trip. Chocolates we were given as a welcome gift from our AirBnB hosts. Spring water from the White Spring in Glastonbury as well as incense we had bought there. Each item symbolises something. To close the ceremony I dropped blue lotus oil across the offerings.

The ritual was fun and cute but I did not like the cave.

It was cold and damp and a little bit eerie. Ropes were hanging from the ceiling that looked like the kind of ropes people hang themselves with. I felt awkward. Like we were not alone in that cave. Like it was crowded with spirits.