The Dreams

Dream 13

Here was the airport. Its atmosphere rumbled with sundry sounds and languages. The women, having finished all their procedures, stood waiting. I drew close to them, offering each one a rose in a silver wrapper.

“Travel safely — with prayers for your success,” I said.

They thanked me, smiling, as one of them said, “This is a strenuous mission, and it will take years and years for us to succeed.”

I grasped what she meant, and pain gripped my heart. We traded silent looks of farewell, as the old times passed before our eyes. The airplane moved: my vision followed it until the vessel vanished over the horizon. When I returned to the reception hall, all I could recall was my desire to find the post office.

It was as if I had come with only this goal. I heard a voice whisper, “Do you want the post office?” Puzzled, I peered in its direction — to find a girl whom I had never seen before. I asked her who she was.

“I’m Rayya’s daughter. Maybe you remember Rayya and Sakina?”

In mounting panic, I replied, “The memory frightens me!”

“If you want the post office,” she advised, “then follow me.”

So — with the fiercest trepidation — I did as she said.