Sharonn, the protagonist of ‘Divini’, would choose ‘I Am Your Sunshine’. She is convinced she is a shining light in others’ lives – in spite of the very different reality.
Extract from ‘Divini’:
Each morning, before setting out to work, she refreshed her skin and clothes with the complex array of scents that was Divini, oriental and spicy, as the advertisers claimed. She could distinguish the strains of berries, citrus, caramel, vanilla, chocolate, honey, sandalwood and patchouli. It was all there. So uplifting.
‘We can smell you before you arrive, Sharonn, and after you’ve left,’ said her friends.
She didn’t like the use of the word ‘smell’ and would rather they used something more subtle and sophisticated, like ‘We sense your arrival’ or ‘We can discern your presence’ but this was not something easily conveyed to her admirers. They would often add, ‘We would love to use that perfume, but we can’t afford it. You’ve got it all to yourself, Sharonn.’
Sharonn adjusted her broadly padded shoulders. Not only did she love Theodoric Fett’s perfume, she loved his clothes. The claim that they were inspired by Stalinist propaganda did not trouble her in the least. Sharonn respected strength in herself, and others, and she had strong views on issues that were as close to her as her own backyard: she was not happy with what was happening all around her, what she could see day by day with her very eyes. It was the neighbours, when they were in residence. Although she was happy to see house values rise, there was, quite simply, too much foreign ownership by people who didn’t really belong, and she felt, in her bones, that in these times there was a need for strong leadership to sort out the right balance in the community; leadership – not by men, but by women who could learn from men how to do it. Clothes were a start.
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