I was asleep on a dirt road until a warm wind greeted me on the cheek
The wind was heard chanting my name in Creole
“Wake up,” a voice said
I rubbed my eyes, yawned
My throat felt dry, lacking liquid
Tongue tasted like chalk
I looked around; palm trees were staring down at me curiously
The moonlight had its back turned, barely offering any shadows
Fireflies quietly were glowing their confessions
I could hear crickets like a serenading chorus
My long legs were caked by dust and dirt; my toes were painted in fluorescent green
“Where am I?” I asked the wind
“You’ve been asleep for seven years, you’re home”
I slept for so long I wasn’t tired
This burst of energy gave me the urge to twirl around and shout out my name
But there was silence, like death it gave me goose bumps
Then footsteps were heard, shaking the earth
It sounded like a whole village was hunting for me in the dark
“Here she is,” a heavy-bellied woman in a black scarf said, feasting her eyes at me
“She looks different,” a lean and tall man mumbled, he had missing teeth
“America made her weak,” another woman observed
“You’re old enough to join us now in the river,” the woman in the black scarf let out
“What river?” I asked
She pulled me by the arm, “Let’s go.”
I followed them
We were marching like soldiers
My legs strong enough to run if I had to
It felt like a century had gone by, and we were still walking
We wandered many villages, no one stopped to look at us
How strange, only the dogs, cats, chickens, pigs and donkeys reacted to our presence
When we finally arrived at the river, my hair had turned gray
throat was no longer dry
I touched my face and it was pleated with wrinkles
To my surprise men and women were in the river bathing in their clothes
All wore black
cheering and dancing fervently in the water like children
There was a full moon in the sky and drums vibrated in the air
“What are you waiting for? Get in the water,” one woman shouted at me
I dipped my big toe in
immediately felt the frigidness
With a grimace and curled lips I stepped back
The river was asking me riddles only an elder can answer but I declined
Suddenly, the big-bellied woman with the black scarf was laughing at me
Except now she was a young girl
she had to be at least eight years old
Was I hallucinating?
I rubbed my eyes for emphasis
all the men and woman in the river were kids
“Get in the water,” a voice shouted behind me
I turned around and it was a young boy wearing a black tattered shirt with a pipe in his mouth
“No,” I yelled back
He pushed me
I fell backwards with a scream
Body splashed in the iced cold water
I was shaking, panicking and cursing the boy out
Everyone had stopped dancing
they froze, watching me
Waiting for a transformation to occur
But nothing happened…
Instead, I was an old woman soaked in cold water
“America aged her too fast,” said the young boy with the pipe in his mouth
(c)2010 by C. Delaleu