Konrad and Alexandra (PDF) - Rolf Gross

lacking. I like this man, and at the moment I am so happy to be here that I can be generous. Knowing and watching thesetwo has not always been easy."Deda shook her head. "I do admire your courage and your dedication to Alexandra. You have taken away the raisond’être for my invitation. I really wanted to encourage you to learn the Sufi turn. You are an excellent dancer, it would beeasy for you. You see, turning is a meditative exercise which does not require the head, only purely physical balance.You are a Kopfmensch, it would be very good for you to lose your head on occasion."Konrad began to laugh. "Alexandra and I just discussed Dahl and used the same term to describe him. I am not nearly asinvolved with my head as he. I have learned much about ‘occasionally losing my head’ from your daughter and fromHenri."He turned serious. "Maybe you are right. Perhaps I should explore the Sufi way further, which has served Henri so well."Deda, suddenly lively, interrupted him. "And which has helped me to balance my creative side with Irakli’s expectationsas his wife. You sure have guessed by now that I was once as rebellious and willfully obstinate as Alexandra. Ilia and thetheater were my first great infatuations."She blushed deeply. "But you are right, Robert Dahl is intellectually more introverted than anybody I have ever met. Andno female charm seems to be able to save him. Alexandra has access to him. I suppose Dahl admires her sharp mind."Konrad had a sudden inspiration. "Have you discussed your invitation to the sema with Persephone and Henri?"She shook her head."Then please ask whether I could bring Vladimir and Dahl along. Let me see what I can do to provoke their interest. Butwho will teach me the turn?""Oh," she said coyly, blushing profusely, "the sema-bashi does that!"Konrad had a good laugh and gave Deda a kiss.Alexandra was puzzled when Konrad told her of Deda’s invitation. She said a few unfriendly words about Persephoneadding predictably, "No, thank you, I am not interested in joining you."When Konrad told her of his conversation with Deda and her suggestion that he should learn the turn, she did modify hercriticism of her mother. But she remained adamant, she did not want to see Persephone again. Konrad pulled hissurprise. "I shall try to persuade Dahl and Vladimir to come along."Alexandra blinked. "Dahl, after the baptism experience? I don’t know. A sema is a lot more emotional than a baptism.""Exactly for that reason."She shook her head. "Are you going to learn the turn, as Deda suggested? Who is going to teach you?"He made a deliberate pause before he told her with a straight face that her mother would do that.Alexandra laughed harder than ever. "My dear Deda, in love with her son-in-law! Good for her!""Shh, don’t laugh so loud, and not a word to anyone, please! Isn’t it charming?"In the evening, alone with Dahl and Vladimir over a glass of wine, Konrad brought up the subject of the Sufi and theirdances. Vladimir listened intently. Dahl referring to the discussion on the Sufiya in Munich and Bredow’s excitementasked whether it would be possible to attend such a dance as an outsider.It had not been difficult at all to get Dahl interested in this adventure! Konrad smiled. "I have been invited to a sema, and Ithink I could take you and Vladimir along. Let me talk to Henri and the sheikh, a woman named Persephone, as you mayrecall. But I should warn you," Konrad laughed, "a sema is considerable more mystical than a Georgian baptism.""What happened in Shavnabada?" asked Alexandra full of curiosity on the evening after the sema. Her parents had goneto the theater with Niko and Claudia, and they were enjoying a glass of wine with the Dahls and Vladimir. Konrad made apolite gesture to let Dahl give the report."It was an unforgettable experience. I am afraid I will need some time before I will be able to comprehend what I saw. Atthis moment I am trying to understand the psychological aspects of this dance which seems to have a powerful effect onthe participants."Dahl glanced uncertainly at Alexandra. "But of course, the biggest surprise was to find your Frau Mutter acting as thedance master. When you told us in Munich the stories of Persephone, Henri the goldsmith, and your mother’s Easterplay, I considered them versions of a Georgian Thousand and One Nights. It is confusing to find you, Konrad and nowyour mother involved in these stories."He laughed briefly. "These experiences are beginning to effect my sense of reality. You are all perfectly real people, whoare acting according to perfectly normal, universal principles, drive cars, enjoy nature, discuss literature and art. You,Alexandra, have an exceptionally sharp mind complimented by a great intuitive sensitivity, and yet I cannot rid myself ofthe feeling that the society you live in is unreal—at least to my understanding. Why? It cannot be that the Georgians arefundamentally different from people in the West."Alexandra guessed what Dahl was driving at, but knew it would be difficult to explain the female secrets of Georgia tohim."I owe you a description of the manifestations of ‘matriarchy’ in Georgia, and of the role of the woman in the our society."Dahl inclined his head in her direction. "Alexandra this would be very kind of you. I asked your father for an explanation ofyour strange allusions, but he evaded my question. I do suspect that this may be part of the mystery of Georgia which I141