The dragonfly had landed…to make that happen.
There was a day, when I decided to dive into a pool of water fully dressed.
On this day, I splashed and swam, in a long black dress of slippery polyester
silky – satin, smooth and cool.
On The full length sleeves, sewed tight at the wrist,
were embroidered flowers in bright pink thread, outlined in blue.
Shiny add – ons caught the morning light making little beacons lift off my arms while I moved them in slow rhythmic strokes.
The intermittent flashing reminded me of blinking lights,
as if they were all part of some long black aircraft carrier’s colorful runway,
bobbing on the waves, fueled by only sunlight, far far out at sea.
I stopped to catch my breath, resting my arms on the surface, I let them float almost weightless in the water, fingers outstretched.
Then so surprised, I almost flinched to see,
a black dragonfly, dropping rapidly down to land,
on top the brightly pink embroidered flower, at my wrist.
I held my breath, and hoped I would be, but an unobtrusive, out of focus background, just a harmless mountain dripping and looming,
over a garden of pink flowers, diamond-like adornments
sparkling here and there.
Every colorful flower was soaked with moisture, waiting to be emptied, and the dragonfly had landed… to make that happen.
I watched while he took in the pool water, filtered through brightly ordered and embroidered hand-stitched petaled patterns . He drank and he drank, but before he flew away, I was already lost in the deepest thought:
The flowers were fake; they were not real and yet, the dragonfly was not disappointed.
He believed them real and on a hot summer’s day, this water was also needed. These flowers soaked in my swimming strokes, hydrated and sated him.
No it was not nectar, not pollen, not sweet, nor sour; it was only water,
cool, neutral refreshing water, but it was enough.
.
Water is life.
While I pondered this message, because I saw there was one, in this impetuous and fortuitous gift of his unexpected landing,
I realized, the dragonfly thought them real, these bright embroidered clusters, and they called to him, and he drank, and It was real enough.
I think about my Second Life…where pixels replace skin and we use only words written on lines, and yet, for those of us, who see it real, we really can quench our thirst, for friendship, achievement, collaboration, satisfaction, even love. It doesn’t take anything more than that.
See it real, and it really can touch you, affect you, even fill you.
As I was resting at poolside, my arms folded on the tiles, that dragonfly returned. He landed on the very same flower, on the very same wrist, the pink threads still wet from my swim, and he drank again. This time, I was not surprised at all.
Of course he came back! Why wouldn’t he?
Karima Hoisan
Jan.11th, 2016
Costa Rica
*Footnote: This is the sleeve of the dress and I thank my best Buddeh, Menubar Memorial, for turning that dragonfly, into a transparency, I could use . It was a re-enactment of the true event.:)
Digital Rabbit Hole 