Yesterday, I met up with Abu and we started to talk a little about the near future.
“So, what are you going to do?”
Do what exactly? I snapped out from dazing away. I thought he meant about the lousy haircut I had, which has been annoying him, but he later explained how hard it is to find a life partner.
“Well, I’m not in a rush. But let’s say that I am destined to be alone, I’ll probably get a house somewhere quiet with a park beside it. Perhaps near to a quarry or near to the beach. I shall try to live simply, or probably open a small bookstore, a barbershop or both. I don’t know. It felt like a calling for me.”
“Sounds nice. Let’s hope that works out for you.”
Abu grunted and took another swig of the tamarind flavored drink from his styrofoam cup — courtesy of the neighborhood mosque.
We shared the silence, gazing over the cobblestone pavement in front of us. Both of us seemed to be in our own bubble of thoughts. What are the chances that I will remain single for life? Perhaps Abu was the one who needed some assurance that there’s always someone he can look up to. After all, he’s currently nursing a breakup.
Why does tamarind flavored beverage exist? I winced as I downed the last of the orange liquid. What remains of it are fine specks of powdery residue at the base of the cup, forming an inverted bell curve formation. Like an oracle, I interpret it as a sign of something divine, that all things shall even out one day.
My wandering eyes glanced to an elderly man, shuffling slowly down the street with an umbrella on one hand like a walking stick, with grocery bags on another. Like precognition, I saw a glimpse of my distant future in the old man; walking around the neighborhood and possibly spending my time feeding pigeons, swans or stray cats.
Some suggest that I should spend my time searching for my other half. Others tell you to be patient and wait. A select few tell me to simply not give a shit and live in the moment.
I tend to follow the last advice.
Destiny liberates me from caring too much over the future which I have no control over, and in irony, I felt empowered by it.
