Doyazan Mohamed
The Color of Hope
It is important to know who you are.. But, what’s more important than that is to know why you are.
……..
(The Somnambulist Dimension)
On a bright day, under the Holy Sun, Helen walked above the yellow dunes of Morocco..
Her eyes were shedding drops of diamonds out of fun.. And in a protective circle around her wrist, she was chained with a delicate Platinum bracelet of tiny daggers, and tiny guns.
She thought “Shape-Shifting is all about the feelings of an image.. It’s all about vision too!”
Suddenly; A giant white Leopard the size of a horse came walking before her, instead of black patches, it bared black (-)’s.
“You are such a beauty!” Helen said
Then she remembered Salma’s words and thought “It’s a reflection!”
The Black & White Leopard laid on its belly, and with a slight twist of its head, it thought “Hop on dear!”
Helen rode the back of the beast, and in a flash; it took her where the desert sand touched a mountain of ice..
A voice echoed loud from the man in the high castle “BRING HER TO ME!” he said
The Black & White beast, carrying the Ethiopian Queen, jumped up the hills of ice with ease, and to the courtyard of The Albino of Marrakesh it went.
The man was wearing an Armani suit made out of a special fabric called ‘The Ghost of Black’.. And when he saw Helen taming his beast, in an Indian Sari made out of the petals of a red rose.. The ebony baring that heart of gold.. The emerald eyes still shedding diamonds for happy tears, and the eyelids brushed with moth wings, flipping mores coded signals, to silence the white screaming lamb within him.. The Albino of Marrakesh was about to say something but froze to process yet another wonder;
Her African black hair was weaved with thin silver thorns, mimicking the flowering designs imprinted in the corners of Taj Mahal.
Then he found his voice, and out of amazement but never out of scorn, he carefully chose his tone, and asked “Who are you… woman?”
Helen laughed such a warm laugh that threatened to melt his castle of ice, and said “Dare you ask… Man!” Then she gave him a fake impression of seriousness, and added “Don’t you know you!”
He laughed and laughed.. Read more off of her to warm up, and danced, and laughed again.
“I come for business my lord!” she said
“No, no, no..” The Albino of Marrakesh said “I will do whatever you ask of me, but not today.. Today; I am your master.. But tonight, and forever after; I am your slave..”
Helen smiled and said “Then; I ask for your kind permission to retire… Master!”
“Granted!” he said
Helen brushed the chin of the beast, it laid on its stomach.. She got off of its back, used his belly as a pillow, and closed her eyes.. Then, she thought of all the African slaves;
How they worked for 7 days, with nothing but sweat for water;
How they walked for 7 nights, with nothing but silence for torcher;
Just to reach safety, feast and sleep, right beneath the emotionally hungry belly of that beautiful Black & White beast.
Suddenly, the Albino of Marrakesh thought “Oh! Silly me!” and clapped his hands twice..
The Sun felt shy and fast he fell.. The Moon rised up wearing a dark cloak the color of night, and whispered “Hush.. Helen is sleeping.. I wonder what is she dreaming of!”
“I don’t know!” The Albino of Marrakesh whispered back “But I smell rain.. Ya Lail, Ya Lail..”
……….
And on that faithful morning, Sameer; the Moroccan Albino woke up in his prison cell. Today marks the end of his 2 year sentence for assaulting that French Diplomat.
Sameer was an orphan who spent all of his childhood in the orphanage thinking;
“I am a freak.. No one will ever want me.”
But once he reached puberty, he was transformed into an extremely attractive man.. His natural muscular body was the envy of every professional swimmer.. And once he reached 28, it was the envy of every Roman God.
His emotional capacity for love was expressed not only by actions and words, but also by his cold energy.
This opened a lot of doors for him, and he chose a carrier in tourism.. He got to know loads of people; from Europeans, to Asians, to Arabs, to Africans, to Americans, to Canadians, to South Americans and Australians.
He taught himself French, English, Spanish and Mandarin.
He laughed, danced, played and fucked.. Men, women, black and white.
But, because of his ultimate boogeyman ‘Abandonment’ he always thought “They don’t need me.. They just crave my body.”
He never needed money, he never asked for status, but these things came to him naturally and nonetheless.
And when he met Charlie; the French diplomat, he thought to himself “This is the one Sameer.. Stop, you have played enough.. Don’t fuck this up!”
And for 1 year they dated.. It was mostly good, right until that night when he accidentally heard that part of a conversation.
Sameer was napping in the bed room of his boyfriend’s apartment, he woke up and decided to go say hello to Charlie’s 2 female friends, who were sitting in the Dewan chatting with Charlie..
“.. I mean.. Didn’t I tell you… He is going around telling everybody that you are his fiancé!” One of the French women lied
Sameer froze at the door to the Dewan..
“Indeed..” The other French woman confirmed the lie
And this is how the French man’s mind was formulated;
(A French wife who doesn’t care = Social Security = Financial Security = Children = Emotional Security)
“Mon Dieu! That poor Arab freak..” Charlie laughed sarcastically “He thinks I’m going to marry him!? But, Mon Cher.. This will never happen..”
And that was it.
Sameer ran to where they sat, helped Charlie up on his feet, and slapped him on his face with such force that ruptured the left ear of the French diplomat..
The 2 French ladies did not dare to move or speak..
And with silent tears full of shame, Sameer looked down at Charlie on the floor and said;
“I needed your intimacy, not your stiff body.. I wanted your love, not your filthy name.”
But that was 2 years ago, and as he walked out of the prison gate, a free man.. Sameer witnessed yet another miracle..
Helen was standing outside the prison gate, next to her classic 70’s Jaguar car..
Her Channel suit was the color of hope, and her Hermes scarf was a flourishing rainbow around her globe.
“Are you ready… Slave!” with a dazzling smile she said
They laughed and laughed..
Then, The Albino of Marrakesh unfolded his arms and palms, gazed up at the clouds with his ruby eyes, and shouted
“IT’S A MIRROR!”
The (+) reflected positivity, and the (-) repulsed negativity..
The clouds felt him, turned dark with melancholy.. and in redemption – it rained.
And they laughed and laughed.. And danced, like 2 joyful tears in the rain.