Though she had witnessed more than most, it was Kali's first experience touring a museum. A narrative in front of her eyes that she had already lived. The deeper into the museum she ventured, the greater the disturbances inside her. One memory atop another until the mound could no longer hold its equilibrium.
Glass swirls cut through her serenity, making panic harder to contain. She drew tiny breaths as her world unravelled. Her voice was soothing, and her expression was one of gentle practice, but it meant nothing. Waves of sentiments moved within her, each one becoming harder to control. Fighting back the tears, she paused, took a few deep breaths, and regained her composure.
In the dark pools of her eyes burned wisdom and determination. They reflected the truth that is only of women. She was the woman who would wait for no man, and by no man could she ever be won.
All fear is born of thought, as hatreds feed ignorance, passed down through generations, and held on to tightly like family heirlooms.
Gracefully poised, she cleared a speck of non-existent dust from her eye. Never to betray her emotions, she walked away from the plaque and its depiction of strange fruit.
"I will not," Kali whispered as she stepped through the archway of the antique door. Too afraid to give any further ground, she watched herself climb over the low wall to the other side, shimmying her body to keep it hidden, the skin on her arms screaming from the action.
Her limbs turned to a honeyed glow from the multicoloured leaves she left behind on the rock wall. She was back where she belonged, in the protective arms of nature. She felt the sun warm her, and all fears began to fade, knowing her path was freedom.
Leaving the museum behind, she realized it was time to start putting one foot in front of the other. She had not forgotten to follow her instinct and choose her path, and she believed that all those who desired change could do the same.
We live in a society where so much is taken for granted. We get hungry and eat. We get tired and sleep. We love and live a life of pain and feel the indignities of living in a world that gives us the illusion of the human race.
Yes, humanity is short on solutions, but it is also long on imagination and possibility. We have to dream about it and believe we can achieve it. There is no hope that we will ever achieve true paradise if one can become overwhelmed by human inadequacies.
Kali, as it turns out, was a bit of a dreamer. And a dreamer, she shall remain.