Five hours after the shipwreck, I rejoiced that I'd washed up not only on an island with drinking water, but also with a companion.
Five weeks after the shipwreck, we had made a fine shelter and found things we could eat — fish, plants, small mammals.
Five years after the shipwreck, as I sat alone by the fire we diligently lit every day from dawn until dusk, I spotted the glow of a ship's lantern.
Thinking of my gorgeous companion and our idyllic island home, I smothered the flames and watched as our chance of rescue disappeared over the horizon.
