Standing Like a Queen without Guards - Essay Example

This woman, though, seemed beaten down by the sunlight, defeated, her shoulders slumped, arms hanging down limply with hands clasped within each other and face turned down toward the floor.  This, coupled with the fact that she was standing still in an office complex that was buzzing with activity at all times of the day, shouted that she was not one of the regular workers at the building and was probably not even associated with the world of business on a regular basis.  Her clothes made this abundantly clear as well.

  The first thing I noticed was a lumpy dark green and black poncho-type thing wrapped around her shoulders.  It had a gold thread woven through it that only served to heighten its insecure texture rather than add any luster to the garment.  It hung in shapeless folds down her torso, completely obscuring any suggestion of her shape and allowing only the two small white hands to show through as they held each other tightly. Two black-clad legs poked out underneath this curtain ending with the rounded toes of black patent-leather ballet slippers covered with intricate beaded designs placed neatly together with toes touching as if still on a store shelf.

  This Little Green Riding Hood seemed completely lost among the corporate wolves and concrete jungle. As I neared this woman, I could see that she wasn’t the old crone of the fairy tales, but neither was she the maiden her innocent posture and out-of-place clothing suggested.  Small lines and wrinkles in her face classified her as somewhere in her middle ages.  I noticed her hair, light golden color with several wide strands of silver, was actually worn long and loosely flowed down her back, something nearly unheard of in the business world I was familiar with.

  A light seemed to dance deep in her pale blue eyes as she looked up at my approach.  I had thought to offer her some assistance, assuming she was lost and afraid, but I found I couldn’t say a word.  A small smile playing about the corners of her lips suggested she was well aware of her present position and the deference being offered her by the corporate moguls flocking around the room.