Reverie of the Sea

Her saree was a flowing sea
It’s warli pattern was dancing around on the cloth like ants looking for food
Yards of sensual silk, softly caressing her body
Crisply twisting and swishing as she floated across the room with bare feet
Borders of green and blue reminiscent of the sky and of the grass
The pungent odor of brackish seaweed, vivid in her memory
She could still taste the salt on her lips, fresh from the beach

The call of a nearby bird broke her daydream as an errant eyelash stuck to the inside of her eyelid, irritating and burning as she plucked it out
Silke’s thoughts turned to Puri where the world stood still for five days

Suddenly her neck snapped back as her pallu became tangled, catching on her shoe
Steadying herself, she came back into the present and freed herself from probable disaster
Jeez, she thought to herself. That was a close call
I need to be more careful and glide like my friends who never wear sarees at all

Pay attention to what you are doing in your life, Didi!
The small voice burrowed deeply into her thoughts

The bang of cymbals crashed. Slowly turning, her ears heard only the soft waves of the sea
Silke hummed as she picked up a paintbrush and lazily began to lay down the outline of her dream
The jarring ringtone of a cellphone whistled in the distance. Her friend Pam’s phone no doubt
Surely she will be coming back to collect it
Another forgetful distraction
The phone should be loudly on mute thought Silke

Dhyan do! Hiram! she said out loud
Her saree untangled itself from her shoe once again
As she slowly floated back into her reverie of the sea