Kites

To untangle the knots you need to find the end of the thread, and then follow it through. If you have patience enough, it can be done.

Through the rain-streaked window, I saw her sitting cross-legged on the damp grass eating an apple.

Now I know her name.

But then, I know everything.

Now, I have seen it all.

At daybreak, I stood at the window. I saw the first arrivals: joggers, people walking dogs. I saw the young woman with tangled hair, dazed in a party dress, carrying her high-heeled shoes, walking barefoot around the lake. I saw the tramp struggle to wake then stumble off to his toilet in the trees.

I do not believe I will be surprised again. Now I have seen it all.

I saw the couple lie down together and the brief flash of her pale skin. I have seen all I want to see. The boy with the cider bottle, bent sick as his mates laugh then turn to look away.

I have seen enough. I turn from the window. I walk away.

The summer will soon be over. I will see the leaves fall and the overcoats emerge. Always the faithful dog-walkers, and an occasional fumbling couple.

And… then, the kites* will fly.

[See here for an explanation of these posts labelled as Fragments]

* Even today, many cultures see the kite as an emblem of transcendence and its flight is considered to bring the flier closer to the heavens. Still, after many hundreds of years, the ‘Festival of Ascending on High’ is celebrated in China by flying kites on the ninth day of the ninth month.