Journey of Love - I (The lady at the pier)

As the sun was setting upon the land of the rising sun, I was standing in the docks, waiting for my ship to pull into port. I was in the small city of Okinawa, on the verge of my journey to Adelaide. I had had enough of the Orient, and was dying to leave this gloomy place of Shinto shrines, misty pagodas, and sushi. I longed to get back to the sunny ranches, bustling with lambs and heifers, with the delightful scent of haystacks wafting from the fields. I longed for the moment where I could wake up every morning, listening to the drone of the tractors that trudged my fields…

Suddenly I heard a deep, but loud blaring horn. Startled, I snapped back to reality. It was a steamer, dwarfing every other junk boat that was tied to the wharf. As the ship docked, I stood by the pier; watching droves of people pour out of the ship and surge towards the Mainland. They were all natives, a smelly bunch weary from the long travel on the behemoth. I could smell seasickness in the air. I looked at the ocean, eagerly awaiting my ship. As darkness fell upon the city, I could discern colossal columns of rain clouds heading to the shore. I simply loathed the climate; there was a rare sunny day, doused with heavy downpours. I sighed in resentment. I desperately needed to leave the place. As I turned around to gaze at the madding crowd, something caught my eye.

Two piers away from my place stood a person. No, it was a lady. There was something different about the way she held her posture. She was wrapped in an elegant kimono. It was red, and there seemed to be some design on it. The failing light prevented me from discerning the colors. Her form was thin, but as the cold breeze swept the Mainland, I could make out a lithe figure beneath the kimono. Her hair was knotted into a complex, yet neat bun. The bun was held together with two long pins. I cursed the darkness as slowly cut her view. And then she moved.
I slowly moved towards her, watching her every step. She was walking towards the drab lamppost. Suddenly I stopped in my tracks. My heart must have skipped a beat at the sight of her. She had the whitest skin and the most delicate face I had ever seen. It was beautiful sight. Once again I moved towards her. As I moved closer, I could make out the shades of blue and black on her kimono. It was a black dragon with a blue underbelly against the background. It was a lovely silk design, but it could not distract me as much as her captivating face did. She was looking across the shore, towards eternity. As I got closer, I saw her eyes. I had never seen such eyes on the people here, but they were soft and luminous. Almond shaped, her blue eyes were barely visible behind those flawless white eyelids. Her lips were full and crimson like the kimono. Occasionally her lips parted to reveal pearly white teeth. But never in these moments did I ever see her smile.

I was now quite close to her. But I did not have the courage to go up to her and look at her closely. From a distance, I discreetly absorbed the beauty that was radiating from her luminescent, yet ghostly white face. The wind seemed to pick up momentum, as a few strands of hair came loose from her tight bun. With one hand, she softly brushed the hair off her face. Her hand was pale, yet her palm was pink. As she moved her fingers through her hair, the sight of her nimble hand coupled with dainty little fingers warmed me. She slightly tilted her head, and closed her eyes, revealing a prominent jaw-line. She took in a deep breath, in a way, which set my heart racing. Slowly, she walked to the edge of the pier, standing all by herself. The crowd was slowly clearing. The breeze was picking up speed. I slowly paced to the lamppost, where she was standing a moment ago. The light barely cast its glow on her figure. I saw her back. Her kimono revealed her neck and a part of her back, and I could discern the nodes of her spine as she breathed slowly. It was then only that I realized that the ghostly white look was barely makeup. The makeup partially forked down her pale brown back, alongside her spine. I saw her open out her arms, in a spread-eagle posture. Her kimono was revealed in all its glory, for now I could clearly see the dragon. There was some inscription written in cream by the side of the dragon. My Japanese was rusty, yet I could not understand the Japanese calligraphies. Suddenly a gust of cold air blew across the piers. I simply looked at her. And then it happened.

The wind slid the silky sleeve up her outstretched and similarly silky arms, revealing light and tender skin. I gripped the lamppost as I saw her naked arm rise above her head and, slowly pull out the long pins that held her hair in place. The wind seemed to assist her, as her hair liberated itself with the wind. Her hair was pitch-black as it fluttered in the breeze. The wind slowly died down, and her free hair covered her bare back. A few strands were out of place, and she roved through her hair with her dainty little fingers. And as she did so, I had a wish. A simple wish to touch her fingers, feel its softness, hold it as it ran through her flowing black hair. And to hold her face softly, and look into her soft blue eyes that glowed with intensity. And to run my fingers across her cheeks, nose and softly caress her firm, crimson lips. The urgency was building within me, and I simply stood there, holding myself back from untold rashness. Suddenly I felt that I was being watched. Realization hit me late when I saw the very lady I was watching, look at me.

We must have stood there for moment, but it seemed like eternity. I was unsure as to what to do next. I watched her gaze, the wind softly blowing across her face. There was a glitter in her eyes, yet she did not smile. She placed the hairpins in her broad silk belt that held her kimono in place. As I studied her face in silence, she seemed to have a different expression on her face. It was a smile!!! It changed her aura completely. She was breathtakingly beautiful. I was mesmerized by her smile. I returned her smile. She slowly lowered her head and held her loose hair in place, keeping an eye on me. My heart went out to her. Slowly she moved, alongside the pier. I stood rooted. I watched her walk away, till I lost sight of her, behind the view of a building. I stood there for a while, awestruck by her smile. In a snap, I realized that she was gone. I quickly hastened my pace towards the place where I last saw her. And then regret hit me.

Around the corner was the main street. It was bustling with people. I raised my hand up in submission. I had lost her. As I roved the street, I saw her get onto a hand-rickshaw. She caught my gaze, and smiled. I could not stand it any longer. I brushed my way past the crowd to the rickshaw stand. But it was gone. She was gone. I looked around, but this time, I could not catch a glimpse of her. Then I heard a deep bellowing horn. It was my ship. For the first time, I did not want to leave. I heard thunder, which was followed by cold drops of hard rain. As the rain fell, I had to rush back to the ship, suddenly feeling a deep loss within my heart. But I stopped. I turned back to the rickshaw stand, and asked the other puller, in the little Japanese that I knew, who the lady was. He smiled at me, knowingly. And told me just four words…

“She is the Geisha.”