Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Dilated Pupils

"...He closed his eyes, struggling to recall what the sunset looked like, the novelists always depicted the image as picturesque, but in the hazy fugue state of temporary blindness, all he could picture was shadows and blurred lines. "So this is what it feels like", he said to himself, a rueful smile crossing his lips as monochromatic shades flickered in his vision with every blink...

He brought out his phone, squinting and peeking at it, amazed at how the once sharp features which previously glared at him with digital defiance and clarity, now looked hazy like symbols buried beneath sand dunes in the persian desert. Bold edges smoothened out into curves, bright colors softened by invisible hands that left smudges where rainbows once bloomed brightly

The only distinct color was red, he could see it with his eyes closed. Soft red hues, not bright, like the color of sun baked earth reminiscent of his childhood days on the streets of the coal city. The red mist didnt hang like a halo, instead it was suspended like a cloud that had been dipped in red dye, just a quick dip, akin to a lapse and decline into temptation to gauge the impact of sin on a pristine nature.

He squeezed his eyes tight shut and the red hue melted in to a black hole, a crater of emptiness with no boundaries, boundless to infinity. But the red hue prevailed, creeping back gradually as the muscles of his eyes relaxed, slowly swallowing the black abyss with warmth, till it cast a glow of victory.  He stretched out his hand, reaching for a memory, a solid frame to reawaken his senses. And as his hand moved, the red mist faded, growing dull as the sunlight receeded, giving way till it merged into a pool of calmness, the color of tepid tea..."


Excerpts from my thoughts after a routine eye exam...