A chance encounter

It was a bright evening in August
when I went to the beach at Colombo Fort
a clean, crowded and a warm beach
I sat down on a rock and listened

listened to the waves breaking hard against the barricade
watching the children running and playing in the sand
there were a lot of people on the beach
watching a kite show with keen interest

I knew my hubby was cheating on me
I found out that one day accidentally
when I caught a name in his phone
the name in his phone was "Marianne from Kandy"

while I was staring into the distant ships
there came a girl and she sat beside me
I may have seen her in the market I thought
a fair girl of around twenty five or so

we smiled briefly and started chatting
gradually it came to other personal things
"I have a boy-friend working in a Bank" she said
"oh?" my husband is also in a Bank I thought

"we had this affair for the past three months
but all of a sudden he stopped seeing me
he won't come and meet me anymore"
I saw tears running down her cheeks

"most married men act that way
my husband is also cheating on me, I guess
I suspect that he got a new lover
but time will heal everything no matter"

together we watched the sun setting down
the fishermen were sailing the boats into the deep sea
the kites were now silhouetted in the sky
we stood up to say goodbye

"don't be too sad dear", I said
"everything will be all right for you
oh, I forgot to ask your name?"
"I am Marianne from Kandy" she whispered