Starting 2023 theme with the YEAR OF THE MOVIES
Our first challenge is GONE WITH THE WIND
I would like to thank the WEP team for all their hard work behind the scenes to come up with such brilliant themes, overcoming personal challenges to keep WEP a success.
Here is my contribution to our first challenge of 2023
THE RETURN
Fly my beauty
Fly on the thermals
Spread your wings
Soar high
Swoop and feed in flight
Come back to me my beauty
Speed back with the wind in your
feathers
Land on my wrist
Bring your message
As I praise your effort
You reward me with sounds of joy
Run my beauty
The wind blowing at your rear
Taking me to our destination
Slow your place, beauty
I’ll give you your head
Take me far and wide
Scout the locations
Find the oasis in the desert
The palm fronds wafting in the wind
Gone with the dust of the sand
We will run further
AKRAM
Akram was tired, so very tired. He’d been travelling for four months trading with many people, swapping stories, finding out the world news, some of it quite frightening, he wasn’t sure how safe life was going to be in the future.
His loyal companions had picked him up when he was homesick
and feeling down, as he did the same with them. Together they made a brilliant
team whether they were selling, buying, importing or exporting, always having
each other’s backs. Not everything went
smoothly on this trip, unfortunately some fighting had been involved and he had
a few scars to prove it. He wasn’t
looking forward to explaining that when he returned home to Ariana.
A cry went up from the lead horseman who pointed in to the
distance. Akram followed the direction
of the finger, there – there was the first glistening dome, if he squinted, he
could make out the spires of the beautiful palace.
As they entered triumphantly through the city gates, marvelling
again at the brick structures built by the ancients of old, he felt euphoric
but also slightly edgy. He looked around
and could see slight signs of neglect, the maintenance of the buildings was not
up to his standard. How could it have
deteriorated within the few months they had been absent.
The stench became overpowering, drains were overflowing,
refuse was piled up in the streets, horse dung and other animal droppings added
to the smell. He would certainly be
calling the council the first opportunity he had.
First though, the major thought in his head was to greet
Ariana and his son, she would have to wait a little while. He could see her
through the upstairs window, looking down at him from their bedroom chamber,
she smiled at him, he could feel her love and patience emanating through the
air. She understood he must tend to his
horse first, then himself before he would be able to greet her properly. She would not want to kiss him with the odour
of travelling that had seeped in to the fabric of the cloth he was wearing. He
would also bathe but quickly, there would be time for luxury wallowing in hot
water the next day.
Akram bounded up the stone stairs, he stopped outside the
door to their quarters, he was suddenly nervous, a grown man like him, strong,
powerful, mighty, the leader of the city, a respected businessman and the
thought of greeting his wife had stopped him in his tracks.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, smoothing his hands down
his tunic, he gathered his courage and opened the door.
Ariana turned slowly as he entered, her eyes took him in, she
drank the very essence of him, he could feel the love pouring out of her heart
and in to his. As he looked, he could
see the perfect roundness of her tummy, full of child, her figure encompassing
their passion. A couple of deep brown
eyes peeked out from behind her skirts.
‘Eyad, my boy,’ Akram knelt down as Eyad rushed to his father
and fell in to his embrace, he picked his son up and moved to Ariana, using his
other arm he gathered her to him, breathed a huge sigh of relief as they stood,
foreheads together, two united (plus one and one waiting) as their love for
each other and their small but growing family emanated from them.
ARIANA
He was back. He was back but for how long this time? Oh, she understood his work, she understood
the toll his leadership took on him. She
understood she was his haven, his oasis, his rock, his safe space.
She understood her job was to keep him happy, to look after
their children, to bear more children as and when they were fortunate enough to
have more.
She understood the world was changing. She understood there were wars to fight,
diplomacy to negotiate, horrendous acts of violation against races, genders,
creeds, too many to mention. She
understood being a woman with her man.
Not everybody understood their way of life.
She was the power behind the leader, never seen to demean him
in public, a smiling, beautiful face with their lovely family. In their bedchamber, they would discuss all
aspects of their lives. Her perspective
gave him new outlooks on ways to approach others. He was always grateful to her for her
guidance and wisdom.
She knew she had what others might call second sight,
visions, the problem was knowing a timeframe.
Ariana sighed and snuggled closer to Akram, she felt his arms encompass
her as their love for each deepened, became overwhelming at times.
ABDALHADI
Abdalhadi knew the time had come
He had to take Akram away from home
Again, they must journey far and wide
To remain neutral or take sides
To preserve their lands
Travelling through the dust and sand
A fortune to be made or lost
Word count: 931
