Paths -a story (Part 1)

Walking down the road, I came across a man seated at the foot of a great mountain. Eyes closed, he nodded. I said hello. Invited me to sit in. So, I laid down my bags, and, joined this stranger seated at the foot of a mighty mountain.

After a little while, of nothing but silence, he opened his eyes. Deep like the night. Serene and filled with hope. I said, how goes it, brother? He nodded again, and with a gesture honed by repetition, dug into the mountain, pulled out a handful, took a long look at the dirt he was holding, before putting the stuff in his mouth.

For a while, I sat there, in nothing but the sound of his chewing and swallowing, not really knowing what to make of what was happening. So, when he opened his eyes. Deep like the night. Serene and filled with hope. I went and asked him, what’s your story, brother? He said, Wanna hear it? I said, Sure do. The man cleared his throat, and with his right hand, drew a stick figure on the ground, right next to his feet.

There was a man who thought a great deal of himself. You know that kind of man, believes himself better than the rest of the world. Seen him, I bet, walking around, wearing his confidence and pride, like a badge of honor, and as if he owned the whole of life. Royalty without a crown, you know. Well, one day, that man who thought so much of himself, was walking on a low bridge to cross a river. Being in no hurry, he stopped in the middle and leant over the rail to gaze at the water.

The water was flowing slowly. It was so clear and clean, it invited him to jump in. So, without hesitation, our man took off his clothes, and jumped. There was a splash and then laughter, followed by cries of a playful nature. The man swam, and floated on his back, allowing himself to be carried by the river, without any worry for time -it was after all a beautiful day. There is no telling how long he stayed in the water, or how far he was taken. But, at some point, he reached a small island, which had the unlikely shape like an eye that was staring at the sky, set at equal distance from both banks. The island’s length was that of a tall man or woman.

Unable to resist the temptation, our man swan to this eye-shaped island, got off the water, and sat on golden sand spread thinly over a hard surface. The island was actually a large bolder. The top part, on which he was sitting, was fairly smooth and flat. Except for an area that had a perfectly circular dip on it. It was the size of a large vinyl record, hollow, concave, looked just like a bowl, and was filled to the brim with water. The man had sat right next to it.

Looking into the bowl, the man found his reflection, and thought to himself, Hey, look who’s here? He smiled, feeling on top of the world. A success story. He looked again. The smile faded, and a question arose, Really? It shook him from within, from head to toes. It demanded an answer. It demanded the truth.

Startled, our man looked away. But the question had been asked, and the iris was still there, unavoidable. The man looked again...

To be continued…