Treasures
Miriam MogilevskyWhen I walked in, it was like stepping into a whimsical, surrealisticdimension. The treasures that surrounded me captivated my senses;sparkling colors, arching shadows, flowing shapes. Aisles like tunnels of highlights and shadows. Dresses and scarves belonging to theballrooms of aristocracy long deceased. Necklaces and braceletsdraping from ghostly figures resembling queens whose bodies havebeen cast into plaster. There were fairies dangling from tree branches and music boxesspewing the tinkling melodies of the past. Masks abandoned from thefaces of dancers and hats tipped but never replaced. Tiny boxes withundecipherable symbols engraved on them. Satin slips and knit shawls. These things took on lives of their own, even though they were hungand stacked on somber plastic and cold metal.I was instantly captivated, just as I’d been all those months ago, whenI’d stepped through this doorway much like I was stepping through itnow. I remembered immediately what that last time had been like.Dressed up for our big night, my friends and I were eagerly awaitingeight o’clock, when the dance would begin. But for now, we enteredthis otherworldly paradise. The girls, we wore our glittering dresses,slender shoes, and most exquisite jewelry, and our hair had been putup and secured in patterns of varying complexity. The boys lookedhandsome and modest, especially the one that I’d claimed for myself -my date and boyfriend. I didn’t know it yet, but it would be all over forus in three weeks.For now, though, I was blissfully unaware of the ticking time bomb andwe enjoyed ourselves. I stood in front of the large mirrors in the back of the store, trying on scarves and purses. I looked beautiful and I knewit. I twirled and giggled, my boyfriend watching me with the amusedexpression of a guy first discovering girls’ universal love of vanity.Despite the temporary allure of my reflection, he was even moreirresistible to look at. His eyes were grey and full of depth, and I wassure that if I looked into them too long, I would fall in and never findmy way out. But perhaps that had already happened.My friends busied themselves with finding new articles of interest. They found a scarf depicting a peacock and laughed, saying to me,“This one’s SO you!” They wrapped another one around one of theirdates and held earrings up to his ears. They planned out theirwardrobes for their far-off prom. I smiled at these wacky, unpredictable
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