It was just another balmy August night and there I was rambling around downtown, restless as ever. Movement alone had the power to calm my scattered mind.
Though solitary, I was not completely alone there, on dry dark streets. Occasionally I came to witness some other poor soul wanderer who seemed just as restless as I. the same dead stare which sees nothing as their instinctual feet guide them to destinations unknown. I've seen people like these my whole life. Men, who in the morning shave without blinking and the women who will forever mourn dreams that died long before their own childhoods ended, as they dust cobwebbed corners in the pale afternoon sunlight. All around us are these people, never blessed with the wisdom of being utterly alive. How many lifetimes must we drift before looking around and seeing all people who don't know us and love us regardless?
It was in this same state of unknowing that I stumbled upon a small, subtly lit tavern with an Irish name. Not until I noticed this dim haven did I realize my legs were sore and my throat parched. Nothing could have been better at that moment than cold bitter-sweet refreshment.
After buying a draft beer from a balding slob of a man I found a seat at a square table off to the side and out of the way. There I sat nursing the stale draft letting my eyes float over the other patrons, most of whom also sat at tables and the bar mulling over their stale beers and pointless lives. Quite unexpectedly I gazed upon a woman who was unlike anyone in this gloomy and useless bar.
Her posture in itself separated her from the crowd. She knew what life was. Everywhere she turned she saw potential. This I knew without even looking into her eyes, her appearance in a place such as this was enough to convince me. Flashbacks within my mind's eye of the dreams of my youth.
My stupor was interrupted by the sound of boot heels clicking on old wooden floors. I froze like a deer in winter fog lights; neither my body nor my mind moved, even my lungs felt dead. Steadily she made her way across the room. Slow and agile. A sly grin which screamed mischievous intent painted upon her eyes. Never rushing nor hesitating she reached the table I had chosen and sat adjacent to and facing me.
Silence evaded the night as she drew a pull from her bottle of imported beer; wrapping her lips seductively around the stem. Have you ever witnessed an angelic oriental saint?