SONIA’S DĒSĪDERĀRE

SONIA’S DĒSĪDERĀRE was first published in the October, 2014 issue of Spark, a leading Indian literary magazine. Here’s the link:
https://www.sparkthemagazine.com/sonias-desiderare/

Sonia shook her head in exasperation as she tried not to notice the commotion in front of her. It was a bit much, wasn’t it? And the way the woman was preening, it was absolutely ridiculous! Even her stance seemed different today. All because she’d got a brand new, glossy, limited edition Louis Vuitton hanging on her perfectly moisturized forearm. After all, it was just a bag. Who notices or even cares?

Everyone! Actually, Sonia had to admit to herself, everyone had noticed and squealed the moment Adila had walked into school. She felt like telling all of them to get a little perspective. It was only 8:30 in the morning and much too early in the day to be getting so animated about a mere bag. Except of course that it was not just a bag. It was a beautiful, utterly gorgeous, deep red, limited edition, this season’s must-have, Louis Vuitton and currently the center of attention at Sonia’s daughter’s playschool. For her of course, it was instant love. Adila, the proud owner of the bag had tried to look as casual and matter-of-fact about it, everyone else hadn’t stopped exclaiming and Sonia couldn’t seem to quell the feeling of envy that was steadily rising up inside her.

Of course she was envious. How could she not be? All the other women at this top-end, snooty playschool alternated between at least half a dozen luxury designer handbags each, which they tossed around quite matter-of-factly as they sipped their green teas while waiting for their children. Everyone except her. She was the only one who didn’t own one of these essential symbols of social and economic acceptance and admittedly felt just a tad jealous about it almost every day. Her family and friends had warned her about this of course, when she’d decided to send her daughter to South Mumbai’s most coveted and impossible to get into playschool for toddlers. Most people who sent their children there were completely loaded and a few bags here and there made no difference to their bank accounts. Sonia’s life alternated between mortgages, loans and a conscious effort to plan expenses and save as much as possible every month. It was expected therefore that there was no room for frivolous things like 3000-dollar handbags in her life.

So there she was, almost shamelessly staring at the bag and wistfully sighing almost every two minutes. Made up of gleaming red, patent, monogrammed, Vernis leather with a shining, gold chain and solid, initialled clasp, it really was the most beautiful creation of mankind she had seen in a while. In fact, she had this sudden desire to reach out and touch it or better still, run away with it. She wondered what would happen if she did that. She could pretend she was getting fits or something and frankly, Adila with her tiny body and lithe frame, was absolutely no match for the robust Sonia. She could grab it in an instant and run away, far away from here where nobody would ever find her again and she could be alone with her gorgeous, gorgeous bag. Even as she returned to pick her daughter up from school, the bag continued to haunt her. She sighed once more and then quickly rearranged her face into a welcoming smile as her two-year-old daughter came bounding out of the school. Wonderfully oblivious to the meaner material desires that her mother had been obsessing about, her eyes were shining and she looked excited and happy as they settled into the car and she started telling Sonia all about her day. Well, at least one of them was satisfied with her lot in life.

The next day dawned nice and bright. It had rained the previous night and even though the sun was out, there was the delicious fragrance of rain in the air. The flowers were blooming, the birds were chirping and Sonia felt oddly joyful. She supposed it was just one of those days when one feels like bursting into song for no reason in particular. In fact, so much so that she was still smiling brightly when she dropped her daughter off at school and headed to the gym for her daily workout.

An hour and a half later, she emerged from the gym feeling even more rejuvenated than before. She didn’t very much feel like going home so she decided to get herself a cup of coffee at the nearest mall. There was hardly any traffic at that time and she made it to the mall in good time. After she had parked the car in the basement parking, she took the elevator to the ground floor. She stepped out of the elevator and was looking around for a coffee shop when she suddenly stopped. As luck would have it, the newest store to open its doors in this swanky mall was a sprawling, sparkling Louis Vuitton. Sonia stopped stunned. Rows upon rows of the most stunning bags in every colour of the rainbow seemed to call out to her. Monogrammed, patent, with sling, without sling, soft leather, clutches, evening bags. They were all there, occupying pride of place along neatly arrayed scarves, wallets and accessories. Sonia stared transfixed. She had never in her life seen a more beautiful, sublime, almost ethereal sight. It was almost as though she was in a dream. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t speak, she couldn’t breathe. That red Alma in gleaming Monogrammed Vernis was so gorgeous and the patent, black evening clutch was the most elegant thing she had ever laid her eyes on and oh, the Capucines in crocodile skin was magnificent. By then she was almost salivating and she felt a sudden surge of longing so strong that she almost wanted to weep. She stretched her hand out and touched the clear crystal of the glass barrier that separated her from these utterly gorgeous creations. She wanted to touch them, she wanted to stroke them, she wanted to have them. She needed to have them. Her wallet contained exactly enough money for a cup of coffee and a sandwich and maybe a refill of gas at the pump and no more but she couldn’t stop herself. Her mind was numb and before she could even think about stopping herself, she had opened the glass door and walked in to the store.

And then suddenly, things began to happen. “Congratulations!” shouted out the entire staff in unison as she stared at them in confusion. A woman in a smart, black suit walked up to her and smiled “You are one lucky lady!” she exclaimed with wide eyes. “Never in the history of Louis Vuitton have we had a sale, promotion or heaven forbid, given away a free gift. But this is a very special occasion. You are the very first customer to walk into our brand new store which opened just this morning. We completed 15 years in India yesterday and this beautiful store was inaugurated by our Global Creative Director. So my dear lady, we are delighted to offer you as our very first customer, this lovely, limited edition bag with our compliments.” Sonia was too astounded to speak. Instead she continued to gape at everyone even as the lady in the black suit placed a smooth, chocolate-coloured box in front of her. It had the legendary initials embedded on the front and Sonia stared at it almost reverentially. The lady in the black suit undid the delicate satin ribbon from around the box, opened it and even as everyone in the store held their breath, pulled out the most exquisite bag Sonia had ever seen. It was a rich, decadent wine colour with a smooth, cream colored sling and a solid, gold monogrammed buckle in the front. Sonia stared at it in awe as the entire store suddenly went wild. Someone clicked a picture while someone else thrust a glass of champagne into her left hand and then everyone started cheering. But all Sonia could see was the bag. She reached out to touch it and almost gasped as she did so. It was an instant connection. This was her bag. It belonged to her. It really did. She closed her eyes as she stroked the bag lovingly, the buttery smoothness soft against her fingers. She could hardly fathom what was being spoken around her even as she tried to believe that this was truly happening. “Limited edition blah blah blah……” “…….never before in the history of Louis Vuitton blah blah blah….” “…..almost a miracle….” “…..what a lucky lady…..” She opened her eyes and suddenly smiled. It wasn’t a dream. It was really happening. The lady in the black suit laughed as she placed the box into Sonia’s shaking hands and clicked another picture. Sonia gulped down her champagne, asked for a refill and gulped that down too. If anything called for a celebration, then this certainly did. She closed her fingers around the box, savouring one of the best moments of her life. “Thank you,” she whispered as everyone smiled and she walked out of the store, clutching her precious bag. It was truly a dream come true.