Carrefour

It was perhaps the spring rain that made my leather coat smell of leather. I stood my back to the wall and listened to the rain. I also listened to questions one asks when it rains, in the springtime, around midnight.

… I thought about all those who have loved someone, at some crossroads of life. They did not hold back when something deep inside said “don’t hold back”. And it was beautiful, and it was ugly. Then they wondered if love can sustain itself. Or if one morning one just wakes up and while brushing his teeth says “I need to learn more about myself.” Love then becomes the name of that search.

… I thought about all those who were loved by someone, on their way to crossroads. They did not hold back for they did not know what to hold on to. They were surprised, and they were also wondering. Can love survive the long journey of that search they were already upon? Is there enough space in that carriage pulled by a Phoenix riding a Pegasus? And what happens when they reach the crossroads? Will they pull in different directions?

It was perhaps the spring rain that made me think of promises. Of new blossoms, of Hyacinth and Gardenia flowers. And yet, my olfactive memories of roads, crossroads and co-riders of that carriage brought back perfumes of Jasmine and Lilac and I realised these have haunted me throughout my days.

… I took my hat off as it was raining very hard, and walked the busy streets of a city where part of my youth had found its serpentine roads. Then, the yet unending journey from city to city, country to country, and across continents. Now I am back, with a book under my arm, a full beard, and a black leather coat.

Yet the questions remain the same, and unanswered they still are.
But the show must go on.

April 11, 2014

©Vahé Kazandjian, 2014

I took this picture in New Orleans. He started his one-man program by saying "Life is a game that cannot be won, but must be played with joy and grace".