Before my Master captured me - and yes he captured me as well as my heart - I was a lonely girl lost searching for my destiny. Let me tell you this. When you have within you a strong force driving you towards something it is only misery when you spend your life fighting it to feel more a part of the world and not apart from the world.
But Master saw this in me even when I did not see it myself.
Once not to long ago, I believed I was free. I believed that I was the keeper of my happiness and my security. But now I know I am a slave and this has made my life all the more wonderful.
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I was living in Washington DC, a city that many visit for it's political power, it's grand museum and simply for it being the capitol of one of the great nations. But from my view DC was only a reminder of all the suffering that can happen and be ignored by the everyday person. That is being poor myself, I knew the pain of those who suffered so publicly.
I stayed away from people mostly because many felt I was a pathetic self pitier. This was due to the fact that after a bought of lymphoma and a run of unbelievable bad fortune, I had come to realize that life is neither malignant nor benevolent but more so benign. I didn't work nor could I work when my bought with cancer demanded I live the life I was meant to. But I did not know what I was meant to be, since I spent my life trying to be what others told me I should be.
One day upon a rare occasion, I venture out to a bookstore. I love bookstores, but I have always had to stay away to save myself from a torment of not being able to buy the books I desired to get. You see, I'm an obsessive book collector and voracious reader. Of course the two often go hand in hand.
This lovely mid April day, I was seeking out some poetic works. It not common that I do this, but I recently had decided I needed to expand my readings beyond the Barker, Koontz and Rice novels. But a note I will say on them is that I was drawn to the characters. The richness of their personality, the magical air of their experiences and the beauty of the world as it framed itself around them. In part I loved these characters because they existed, and I hated them because they never existed within my reach.
I was browsing a poetry collection of works by Carlos Williams Carlos trying to decide which book to get.
"He's a very interesting poet," the man said.
I turn to face him - a man several inches taller than me - as he smiled softly in my directions. I was instantly uncomfortable. I looked at him blankly not sure what to say. Then he reached towards me and I, already uncomfortable, flinched only to realize he was reaching for a book.
Appearing not to have notice my reaction, he showed me the book and added, "This one I have myself. It is a very good collection of his works."
He then handed me the book.
I smiled and looked over the book absentmindedly. After all, here was this man - a not too bad looking man at that - standing around with little miss man-a-phobic.
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The next hours or so were a haze. I don't know how I get swept off into things, but I found myself invited to lunch with this man, whose given name was Daniel. Eventually even, I was talking and enjoying myself. But then once I feel welcomed by a man and not under scrutiny, I am very open and talkative. He was also treating which is something that is an oddity with me. That being I never liked asking others to go out with me and I especially hated admitting I couldn't afford to go somewhere. This wasn't because I couldn't go but because of the pity and some feelings of obligation people had - in the past - held for me.
As that hour passed so did weeks, months and even a year. We had become very close friends. We would go out together or sometimes when I was ill he'd come and spend quiet evenings watching movies with me curled up in his arms.
At best I could say we were friends, but friends very few people in this world could understand. It wasn't a brother-sister thing. Our relationship was one build on respect in each other, and this allowed us to be comfortable in situations that normally would lead a man and a woman into sex.