Keiron sat on the sea wall watching the calm water of the Atlantic Ocean, an endless flow, as the sun sat in the west with it’s magnificence beyond compare.

The water lapping gently across the rocks seems somehow to speak to him and sometimes he would smile and answer quietly, “What are you saying to me? Have you brought tidings from mother Africa?”
Far beyond the horizon where the ocean consorted with the sea, ships had sailed with human cargo over a century ago and the young man mused, “ A long way we have come, now stranger to you, dear mother but within your breasts lies our true identity.”
Time could not return what was lost but Keiron’s young mind was always searching for something unique. Across the water he could hear the pulsating beat of the drums, telling stories of hunting and feasting. He saw the bonfire in the village square, the small huts and the women dressed in rich tribal wear. The beat of the drums suddenly changed to a slow tempo and from the dim shadows she stepped out, a most beautiful girl, a gem of Africa, her body slowly moving in rhythm to the drum beats.
It was the first time she had come into the picture in his mind and Keiron watched entranced by the passion in her eyes as she danced, her smooth, black skin glistening from the glow of the small bonfire. “A pure African beauty”, he whispered, “Untouched by ugly hands, free as a butterfly. I wish she was real.”
‘Who are you talking to, man?”
Keiron looked up almost startled into the teasing faces of his two best friends, Jamal and Naren.
“Not speaking to anyone,” he said jumping nimbly to his feet. “Just reciting a few poetic verses.”
“Forget poetry, bro”, Jamal said with his usual flair, “Look at the scene that way.”
The scene was all the beautiful girls, relaxing or just strolling along the seawall.
Keiron shook his head and smiled resignedly, “The mischievous and wild duo of high school, you guys won’t change at all.”
“Our style, our lives,” the two friends said in unison suave look on their faces.
“I wonder what the two of you would be saying in ten years from now.”
“Why is that?”
“Because you’d be married with children,” Keiron said with amused candour.
“Damn,” Jamal and Naren grumbled, the confident smile vanishing from their faces. “Why are you trying to torpedo our ship, man?”
“Just saying because you can get hit by a storm or hurricane”, Keiron couldn’t stop himself from laughing and his friends punched him roughly but in a harmless way.
“What are you doing here sitting by yourself anyways?” Naren asked, “Your girlfriend left you?”
“No man, I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“What?” both friends looked shocked.
“I mean, not seriously. What is it with the two of you? A guy can’t sit by himself a little?”
“Yeah, but you know how things are spoken of these days of guys who date often.”
“Seriously?” Keiron fumed, “I’ll kill the two of you.”
They ran but Keiron, a former champion athlete of high school caught them easily, holding them in a vice.
“Are you guys fighting?” two girls nearby asked concerned.
“No, we’re just playing”, Keiron said letting go of Jamal and Naren
The three friends settled down with a few cold Stags talking about their work and their dreams just like they did as boys in high school. Jamal and Naren had always been fun-loving and mischievous and Keiron the cool, practical one. Now young men, he was not a part of everything in their outgoing, party loving lifestyle because of his strong religious background but that did not affect their friendship.
He went to a few Bollywood shows and Soca concerts, interacting and celebrating the different cultures with his friends for not only did ships sail from Africa but from the Asian continent as well. So this beautiful, tropical land became home to different races.
Keiron, an ambitious young man, tall and athletic, with boyish good looks worked part-time in his father’s mechanic shop while pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering at the university. His mother-a woman of God and proud of her ethnicity, instilled good values in his young mind on race and religion. Maybe it was her teachings that borne in him a desire to hold on to his true identity of Mother Africa and gave him a sense of belonging. So deep was his feeling that now in his mind he could visualise the girl of his dreams, a true African girl, though she may not be from Africa but here in the West Indies. He wondered though, “How would I recognise she’s the one when I see her?”
He knew not the answer then and his dream stayed a secret within him as new days were born in time’s network as he waited to find her.
In the month of November, more than a year later, his mother fell ill and Keiron found his days tasked even more with work, studies and church duties that his mother requested of him to fulfill. His social life seemed on hold and this dream, drifting somewhere in the cosmos when one night he had a strange dream of lions, zebras and giraffes. At breakfast the next morning, he wondered aloud, “Do I have to go to Africa to find her?”
“You’re going to Africa?” his six-year-old nephew questioned, with fear in his big, bright eyes.
“No, Travis.” Keiron assured him, “It was just a thought.”
“You can’t go there”, the little boy advised, “The Zulus will capture you.”
“That’s how much we have become strangers to our own African brother?” Keiron asked.
“Before you go to Africa”, his sister interrupted, a teasing smile on her face. “Can you take the kids to the zoo today?”
“Why me ?”
“Because you’re their uncle.”
“They have other aunts and uncles.”
“I know, but you have more patience and you’re fun to be with.”
“Lord,” Keiron groaned as he left for the workshop, “Where is my life?”
He took the children to the zoo, during his lunch break and they were standing by the lion’s cage watching the cubs playing with their mother when not far from him, he heard a beautiful voice. He turned to look and saw her by the zebra’s cage surrounded by a group of young children. Something strange happened to his heart as he looked at her, the music from cupid’s harp, never a sweeter sound and he whispered, “Oh my God, it’s her.”
She turned, walking with the children towards the lion’s cage, a dream come to life. He stood there as though in a trance, as she came closer, her lustrous, curly hair blowing a little in the wind, her dark beauty defined. There was a little sparkle in her eyes when she looked at him and said with a warm smile, “Hi.”
“Uncle Keiron,” the children were pulling at his arms, “We want to see the giraffes.”
That snapped him out of his trance and he returned her smile but words he could not find for drums seemed to be beating in his heart. He walked with the two kids, turning back to look at her and as the drum beats eased, words found their way back to him. She was under the benab in the gardens, sharing snacks to the children when he spoke to her, “Can I help you?”
She looked at him, hesitated a little then smiled and handed him a tray, “Sure, thanks.”
“Who are all these children?” he asked, noticing how loving and caring she was with them.
“They’re from my church.”
“That’s great. My mother will love you”, he said with sincerity.
She laughed and he looked at her, that special feeling in his heart writing a poetic verse for her.
“That’s beautiful”
“What is?”
“Your laughter, it brings a sparkle to your eyes.”
A little interest glowed in her eyes as she looked at him and she asked curiously, “What was that look at the zoo?”
“What look?” he asked, a little worried that she may have seen it the wrong way.
“Like you had found something precious you had lost or something you had been looking for.”
He did not answer for a moment, the love in his heart over the years, he had waited to find her, reflecting in his eyes and he said to her, “I found my dream.”
That deep look, undressed for her to see left her speechless for a moment and she looked away, not sure what to say.
“Miss Anjalie,” a little girl calling for her, helped her to regain her composure.
A surprised look crossed Keiron’s face, “Anjalie?”
She tried not to laugh at the look on his face, “What’s wrong?”
“You have the looks of a pure African girl.”
“I am.”
“Why an East Indian name?”
“It’s funny really”, she said, “When my mother was pregnant with me, she saw the movie, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and fell in love with the heroine’s name.”
“Oh boy,” Keiron laughed shaking his head in disbelief, “So I’ve been searching for an African girl named Anjalie?”
“Does that shatter your dream?” She asked.
“Not at all,” he said with a smile of true appreciation. “The way you smile and your laughter adds a uniqueness to your dark beauty and your Indian name.”
He held out his hand: “My mind had always been searching for something unique and I’ve waited a long time to find her.”
She smiled and put her hand in his, no need for words.
His search was over, he had found his dream.

(By Maureen Rampertab)