Ariel was sitting on the stairs of the lonesome building. She was drinking a cup of hot green tea and looking at the floating clouds.
Some stranger has sat near her. It was an old man with a grey hair and beard.
-  Do you feel loneliness young girl? - he asked.
-  No, not really. I think it isn't loneliness, it's just some kind of emptiness.
-  Do you like this feeling?
-  Sometimes i feel uncomfortable, but mostly i love this feeling.
-  What does it give you?
-  Purity. It clears my mind and soul.
-  You feel yourself like a blank sheet of paper. But it is easy to draw on blank sheets...
-  But if only a hand of an artist takes exactly this sheet...
-  Or it isn't a hand of an artist at all.
After that there was silence between them.
-  How do you defend yourself from loosing this purity?
-  I block every opportunity to go through my cage.
-  You can defend yourself from the outer world, but you can't defend yourself from the inner...
-  Do you mean i can't defend myself from yourself?
-  I've just said exactly the same.
Ariel started to think. Her forehead has covered with wrinkles. After that she relaxed and whispered:
-  My demons don't bother me.
-  Well...have you ever loved someone?
-  I don't think so. How does it feel to love someone? Is it something similar to listening to Jim Morrison, slowly whashing down the music by a cup of coffee?
-  It's like listening to the silence and hear everything.
But have you ever fallen in love with someone?
-  Yes, once it happened.
-  And how was it?
-  It was like throwing a cat into the water. I was very afraid of this feeling and i was trying to escape.
-  Why?
-  I'm scared to open myself to someone. I don't wanna get attached to someone.
-  Young girl, someday you'll meet a man who breaks your cage and brings you freedom.
-  I don't want it.
-  Believe me, you will. How do you feel now?
-  It's like my mother asks me to do something immediatly, but i have my own problems.
-  I see...do you love yourself? Are you a good person? Just how do you estimate yourself?
Ariel kept silence for a while. Then she answered:
-  Hmm...it's a difficult question. But i think i'm not a bad person.
-  What are your best features?
-  I think i'm kind, compassionate, reliable, responsible...
She stopped, keep tugging the end of her skirt.
He smiled.
-  I see...so why are you so selfish? Why don't you want to share your kindness with someone else? Think about this young lady.
She was thinking.
-  I wanna everything be good. - she said.
-  Look at these children going by. Look at their smiling eyes. The children are so happy. They don't know bad things. Such child lives in all of us somewhere deep inside. Don't be scared to find it in yourself. And feel its pure nature. And let this warm feeling capture you for a while.
She smiled.
-  Aren't you scared to discuss such questions with a stranger? - he asked.
-  I see you at the first and at the last time. It's better you take it with yourself than someone who knows me.
-  Well, now i'm leaving.
And he walked away.
The clouds were still exciting Ariel. She put on her hat and continued looking at the sky.

2012

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