The one-eyed king of South Beach

by Jeremy Bensusan (United States of America)

Making a local connection USA

“The One-Eyed King of South Beach” At the edge of the Atlantic Ocean where the sun never goes down was a man who dressed as a wizard. I had been looking forward to a relaxing day at the beach, but my day took an unexpected turn when I agreed to a Tarot reading by the mysterious man, who went by the name, “The King.” “The King” stood at an imposing height, with dreaded gray hair and a single piercingly-blue eye. Waving his hands as if he were about to perform a magic trick, his one eye wide-open at the naked sun, he shouted: “These 4 cards I’m about to draw tell the story of the rest of your life, for better or worse!” “Do you accept, brother?” Seeing as this man was clearly deranged I started thinking about how I could get out of this. He grabbed my hand and placed it directly above the deck, looking into my eyes he asked again. “Do you accept?” For reasons I’ll never know, I said “Yes.” He drew my first card, “The Sun.” “Under the light of the Sun, life reclaims its primordial goodness!” He yelled and began to walk away. “Where are you going?” I asked. “To the next energy spot, no time for questions, follow me.” Left in utter confusion, I did. I walked by his side while passing the patterning Art Deco buildings that lined up against the beach in a multitude of boisterous shapes. I followed “The King” into the colorful streets of South Beach. After walking for thirty minutes and both of us perspiring, we ended up at “David’s Cafe.” He sat down, and in fluent Spanish ordered himself a steak sandwich while rhythmically tapping to the faint Latin music. “Why here?” I asked. He muttered something about the winds shifting energy around the city and how they rarely stay in one spot. At the table, he drew the next card, “The Lovers.” “Ah! Your true love awaits!” He closed his eyes while grasping his temples. “I can see the two of you, happy, smiling with a beautiful home and lovely children!” Immediately he took a monstrous bite into his sandwich. After recently going through a hard break up, I was elated to hear good news. I noticed myself believing in “The King” and happily covered the bill. “On to the next one,” he said as we walked out of the door. As we were walking, he suddenly stopped right in front of a botanical garden. “This is the spot,” he says. He pulls out a single card from his back pocket and lets out a roar that scares several tourists. “You’re a warrior!” He flips over the card: “Strength.” “Your future is bright! All you must do is show your strength and the universe will reward you.” “How will you show your strength, brother?” Before I could answer he handed me his bag. “Here, take this, it contains my most valuable possessions, if you can hold this for the remainder of our journey then surely you must be strong!” He then led me into a busy souvenir shop. I thought there was no way this was an “energy spot,” but while he browsed through sandals as if he heard my thoughts, he said: “This is the spot, the winds must be strong today.” He pulled out the next card from inside his hat. “The Wheel of Fortune, You’re going to be a rich man!” My eyes lit up. “With the wheel of fortune in your future, you’ll never have to worry about money again!” I felt like I had won the lottery. “The King” spoke in such a persuasive way I believed him. Since I was a “soon to be millionaire” I offered to buy him a pair of sandals. As the sun began to set, we walked back to where we started. The street was oozing with neon lights and the palm trees swayed ever so gently against the rolling ocean breeze. As I stood completely drained, he drew the last card. He grinned, smiled, and then burst into uncontrollable laughter. Without saying a word he flipped a card that read: “The Fool.”