Arabian Sunsets

Prologue

"No silly girl, like this.اقب." The little girl witnessed with unfathomable awe, the liquid fluidity in the movement of her mother's hips.

They moved with such painfully accurate precision and grace, there almost seemed to be a powerful use of majik at work.

Carefully, the little girl took note of her mother's every movement, burning every miniscule detail to memory, and with the tiniest bit of intimidation, wondered.

She wondered just how many sleepless nights and idlesome days it had taken her mother to perfect the art of belly dancing.

For in order to move with such a commanding elegance, hips thriving on the lack of gravity at play, with the type of isolation only professionals possessed, it should have been an equally daunting task, as it was rewarding.

Her soft, yet toned dancers body that looked like it belonged to a twenty one year old and not to someone in their forties, was proof of this.

And it also required patience. A type of patience that Azzy herself lacked. A trait that for years, her mother tried her best to instill, but to no avail.

To her, she was more of an immediate results type of person, who preferred to see the aftermath within a short timespan. It was always her blindspot.

"I can't do this," A halt was placed in her mother's movements, as she glanced down at her young daughter. "I give up."

Azzy plopped down on her exercise mat, a huff following after. That was it. Enough was enough. For months, they had been practicing over and over, back to back, with the same results. Nothing.

Nothing happened. Nothing changed. "Belly dancing is a way of centering the soul. It brings peace and tranquility, humbling oneself," her mother would always say.

And after months of non-stop practice, she still felt as empty as she did when she had first started, maybe even more than before. Hollow seemed a better word for it.

There was always this sense of wanting to be more. Wanting to feel more than the hollowness that occupied her heart and soul. And what better way to fill the void gap than belly dancing?

"The remedy for everything," as her mother put it. And indeed, for a while, she had felt that way too, until here she was now, six months later, with nothing to show for.

Where was the peace and tranquility? Her feeling of belongingness and wholeness?

A knowing smile made its way unto her mother's face. "Sweetheart," she cooed, taking a seat beside her currently brooding daughter. "You say that everyday."

"Great, now not only am I impatient, but I'm a quitter too. Thanks Mom." Bitterness laced every word she spoke, the severity of the truth behind it, only succeeding in further crushing what little determination and hope she had left.

The soft, sharp intake of breath her mother took, was still audible even though it was meant to be done quietly.

"Mom! I didn't mean..." In all her state of bitterness, she managed to hurt her mother's feelings. She hadn't meant to do it, she was just so frustrated, and didn't know how to vent it properly.

Her bottom lip visibly quivered. Her feeling of sadness was no match for the utter shame she felt, at saying something like that to her mother. A sigh of dejection left her lips.

"I was frustrated, and took it out on you. I apologize." Her head bowed in deflation.There was no form of redemption for her inexcusable behaviour.

Her mother was always on her side. She knew that, but seemed to lose sight of it sometimes. The anger and hurt sometimes became too much to tame into silence and submission.

"Hush, my dear," Once again, her mother came to her aid, wiping away her tears. "Everything will be alright."

Teary eyes met her mother's determined ones. "How?" A question her mother seemed to always hold the answer to.

"With time," she answered, a broad smile gracing her lips. "With time, my dear."