29.12

I was in the desert.

My mouth was dry. I could feel the sand, the grit against my teeth, whipped up by the wind, unknowinly entering the dark cavernous realms of my mouth.

I was walking along a road, red rock mountains in the distance. I came upon a tree, the only shade for miles. Caught in the uppermost bows was a kite of pink and yellow and green. Trembling in the wind, trying to loose itself, to fly, to be free.

I watched it dance it's imprisoned dance.

I sat below the tree to rest. The leaves of the tree played a sporadic melody as the wind continued to wind it's way across the plain.

In the distance I saw a mirage. A man was walking towards me, dressed in white. His loose clothes hung over a skeletal frame. He carried a cage made of wood, sticks bound together in a manner I had not seen before. There was nothing inside.

He walked as though I was not there below the tree. I thought perhaps he did not see me. I was hoping he would pass by. He stopped.

He turned to face me. His eyes were closed. The wind failed. The leaves quit singing. I could hear his breath. In, then out, then in once more.

Nervous I watched him.

His eyes opened suddenly.

They were the color of the ocean, far from land. Far from the reach of the average person.

I felt as though I was falling into them, into their depth. Into the depth of the ocean.

My breathing failed.

I felt as though he was looking not at me, but in me. Into the very center of my being. Past the layers of protection I had constructed through the years. Past every defense I held, into the heart where my deepest wish and my greatest fear both resided.

My eyes continued to hold his gaze. It seemed as though they posessed all of the knowledge ever known in the world. I was lost.

He raised his palm as I stared entranced. Showing me each finger, he slowly opened the door to the empty cage. He thrust his hand inside, feeling around for a moment, then clasped his hand tightly. He retracted his closed fist and held it for a moment in front of me, then threw it into the air and released his grip as a small white dove took flight, away into the heavens she flew. He watched her as she ascended and began to laugh, the sound of which made the leaves sing once more as the wind began to whip up the sand from it's momentary rest.

He lowered his gaze to mine once more, and with the force of a wave meeting the shore, my breath returned to my chest.

He turned and continued walking, his gait slow, and never once looked back.