When Dreams are Calling by Carol Vorvain Page A

still a human
being, and
you need compassion, understanding, and support more than ever before.
    I was not doing it for him to praise me and I
expected nothing in
return.
    My pockets were empty and my mind troubled, but
my heart was still
generous and pure. And as long as it remained as such, I knew, sooner
or later,
everything else would fall into place.
    The music kept playing in tone with the wind
howling through the
subway tunnel.
    That day, I promised myself to give something
away each day:
sometimes an hour of my time or a piece of advice, other times money or
food,
and each day a smile for someone less lucky than me. I promised to be
kind.
    The following week, I found a
well-paying nine-to-five job in a
real estate office, and my employers became my close friends. With a
secure
job, I could finally move into a nice apartment, all alone, and buy the
furniture I dreamed of.
    You might say it was a coincidence and you
might be right. However,
I chose to believe that it was the universe’s response to my kindness:
give and
you shall receive.
----
    Dora’s
Journal Notes
True kindness does
not wait to be
asked, does not have a particular recipient, does not ask for reasons
nor
expects anything in return.
Keep your goals
constant, but always be
willing to change your approach.
It is your mind
that turns obstacles
into dead ends.
----

15
A Few Genuine Advantages of Living Alone
    After
a Chinese roommate
    And
a lesbian kind of date,
    After
cockroaches roaming free,
    Never
in hoards of less than three,
    Moving
in a clean, nice place,
    By
myself in all that space,
    Felt
a little bit surreal,
    No
more trial by ordeal!
     

“Finally! My own
place! I am free to do whatever I want, with whoever I want,
whenever I want,
Robert!”
    “Finally no more roommates, naked or half
naked, alluring or
disgusting, lesbian, straight, or whatever is out there,” Robert said,
excited
for me.
    “Won’t my life be boring now?”
    “You mean finally a bit of normality! I was
getting worn out by all
these ups and downs of yours.”
    “I was just getting fit! I promise no more of
these ups and downs
from now on! However, I cannot promise other ups and downs won’t take
their
place,” I said, blowing him a kiss.
    “About time.”
    “True,” I responded, thinking that for more
than four years now, I
did not have a real boyfriend.
    “Well done, sweetie. You came a long way. One
dream accomplished.
And, ’cause I know how much you love gardening and hate cut flowers,
here you
go,” he handed me a pot full of herbs wrapped around in red, yellow,
and blue
paper, the colors of the Romanian flag.
    “Is that all?” I pretended to be disappointed.
    “And a card. As for pinching your sexy postérieur ,this
comes later. Open the card and read it out loud! That’s an order!”
    “A unicorn on the cover?! Hmm… ‘ May
all your dreams come true... especially
the weird ones. From one dreamer to another. Te
pup. Robert .’”
    Te pup was the first Romanian word I
taught him, and it means kiss you.
    “Then do it. Make the words count,” I said,
giving him the cheek.
    “You’re the best,” he said gently.
    “I know. The best around here. Out there, in
the big world, that’s a
different story,” I joked. “Let’s cook something. I am starving!”
    “Not sure about that. Last time you cooked, I
ate and flossed at the
same time.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “You know what I mean; your hair can’t seem to
resist the temptation
of gettin’ in your tasty dishes.”
    I blushed. He continued:
    “No need to be embarrassed. You taste good!
Now, I could use some
cool refreshing pop before you make a total shambles of your kitchen.”
    We laughed.
    When the time came for some serious
renovations, sitting comfortably
on my queen-sized bed, I recalled the times when I was sleeping on an
inflatable single mattress in that awful bachelor apartment which back
then I
called home. So much had changed since that day and I made it