I have become
I have become that girl
Whose short hair is swept up in short gusts of wind
Who has stopped noticing the seagulls overhead
Who stands impatiently in the street while traffic nips at her toes
Who cycles to work, weaving through insolent taxis at Euston Station
Who tries her best to ignore the relentless barrage of advertising that comes with city life
Whose gaze rests above you, through you.
Yet I have stopped ignoring friendly faces -
I look them in the eye and introduce myself.
I look for friendships in the grocery store and have hope in improbable romances.
I read my horoscope with secret hope and intense analysis.
I cook for one, read voraciously, and go for walks at night.
Instead of the bus to Chapel Hill I hope the train to Brussels.
The coast of West Africa has replaced Myrtle Beach.
My Dukecard has become a paycheck, paid in great British pounds.
And the Bryan Center caf has become the neighbourhood pub.
(My computer adds an apostrophe to caf and changes my spelling of neighbourhood to include a 'u')
South Carolina is France and Virginia is Scotland
Russell Sqaure is my chapel quad.
When I do attend a class these days,
The man who distracts me is of the older, married, father, doctor variety.
My support circle has become a line (consisting of two points).
The reliability of my comfort zone
Has been replaced with the romance of this solitary woman.
And the elation that comes
With the realization that I am great company
The kingdom of solitude has opened to me
I have become a queen.

Denise Anoopa Sharma
(1980-2005)