The drumming beats pound with my heart,
as I walk the flower laden path
set between the crowds of people
yelling, trilling, shouting, cheering.
Dancers on the outskirts chant
as they move wildly yet controlled
as the fire on the torches do.

A silken robe is wrapped about me
with a thin necklace
and a thin lattice styled hat
and a ring,
all of gold,
all for me.

I move one step, two steps, three, four, five…
The dancers move faster, faster, faster.
The flames from the torches flicker.
…six, seven, eight, nine…
The drum beats harder, stronger, deeper.
The crowd grows larger and louder.
…ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen…
The altar ahead grows impossibly nearer.
My mind tries to capture it all.

I finally arrive to the altar,
and all are uncomfortably silent
to let the most holy of them speak.

“Today
we celebrate the blessings
that our gods have bestowed upon us.
Another boy is now a man,
and this man will grow to a leader,
a seeker of knowledge,
a prophet of the gods.

“It is on this night,
when the moon is fullest
and its light is brightest,
that all the stars
must humble themselves in the night.”

On my shoulder, the Anointer places his delicate hand,
and I kneel under the command.

From a small jade plate he holds,
he rubs an oil with a fragrance of roses
onto his fingers.

My eyes shut.

Across my face comes
the breath of a spirit,
the magic of a wizard,
the hand of a god.
Placing on my head
enlightenment
and empowerment
and enchantment.

I never thought I would reach this point
standing before all,
before the gods,
before my family,
before myself.
Never before did I notice
that this day would seek for me.
Never.

My eyes open.

The Anointer grins.

“Son,
take with you the power and the energy,
the love and the affection,
the hope and the faith
of our greatest gods.”

I bow my head as he speaks.

“And always remember…”

He looks up
into a me I never met before
nor knew until now.
A lost soul rolling with the wind,
a curious entity with a mission,
a renewed man ready to learn from the gods.

“… the Anointment.”