100 Days
I write of a man in the 21st century, and because every character in a story must have a name, I shall call him Alladin. The name sounds familiar to you, and so shall the story, except that it is not a fairy tale, because fairies exist in dreams and the world is too real to be dreaming.
Like every common man, Alladin too was a man with strong desires, big and small, real and virtual, good and bad. And just like a mosquito who does not know of any harm he causes to anyone else, Alladin was ready to bite, unaware of it though. Other than his dreams and desires, he also had friends, family, neighbors and the rest of world, just like everyone else does.
One day, on a hot afternoon, while traveling on the highway, Alladin found a lamp lying in sand on side of the road, scorching under the sun, and shining as bright as gold. As he pulled over, lifted the lamp and rubbed it to remove the patches of dirt that seemed to have covered it for centuries, smoke appeared, out came a genie and Alladin dropped the lamp out of fear. Rising to size and height, the genie said, “You are my master, and I’m your slave, and your wish…”
“…shall be my command, right? I know all that!” Alladin just finished off the genie’s statement, and the genie nodded his head in agreement. “Am I the luckiest guy on earth or what? Now I can have everything”, shouted Alladin as his voice echoed in the silence of the desert, “…everything!!!”
“There is something you must know master”, said the genie, “It is not actually the way you think it is. For anything you ask from me, I shall take one person from your city and change him to smoke, whoever your wish it to be. Not kill, just turn them to smoke.”
“What? But why??” asked the confused yet happy Alladin. “Because, everything is only a word, Master”, replied the genie, creating a short-lasting torment in Alladin’s mind.
Desires are often too strong to be given up, and a few unimportant people disappearing in thin air would not make much of a difference. Within a week Alladin had a huge palace, many servants, plasma TVs, sound systems, video games, bikes, cars, personal helicopters and a lot more. As days passed by, wealth increased inside the palace, and smoke increased outside the palace, as one by one, people of the city turned to smoke. Alladin had never been so happy before, because he believed that his family and he were very close to having everything, yet he would always come up with some or the other thing he did not have, and a reason to have one more human being blown off as smoke. He was, in fact so engaged in his leisure, that eighty days passed away without him seeing any of the people he knew or loved, or rather who loved him.
Alladin knew of every soul he had turned to smoke, and in return, had them painted on a huge canvas, which was put in the darkest corner of his palace, as he knew that guilt was not amusing. Ninety days passed by, Alladin, his family and his friends became not only the richest but the most influential people on earth now, and unsurprisingly, the joy didn’t seem to end. Alladin’s friends, however, had begun to worry that there was no end to Alladin’s wishes from the genie, and that any city was too small for a man’s desires.
On ninety-first day, Alladin asked the genie to get him a car that could fly. But the genie told Alladin that there were no more people left to be turned to smoke, and that his family and friends were the only people alive in the city other than him. It was obvious that Alladin knew such times would come. He now had a very difficult choice to make, as he was to choose the least fond from amongst his friends.
Desires are like a surprise gift, with one box inside the other, and so on, except that the boxes never seem to end here. And as you appear to get closer to the end, the desire turns into a quest which you must complete or there shall be no rest. Sacrifices are made, people are lost, and feelings are given up in the quest, with a hope to get them all back at the end of it all, but the quest must get over. Alladin was set on this quest, and all his friends and family had turned to smoke before he could end his quest, and before he could know what it is like to have everything.
On the ninety-ninth day, Alladin sat in his palace, on a golden chair, which was the first few of the things he had wished. He looked at all the valuable things around him, thinking of ways to pass his time, which surprisingly was not that easy now as it used to be a few weeks ago. He looked at the sky outside the window, and saw that the sun was not visible as there was smoke everywhere, unlike the times when he could see the clear sky even as he slept. And thoughts of the old times surrounded him, his friends, his family and the city, and how he loved them all even when he had nothing but them and his dreams. Memories brought a smile on his face, which tuned into an expression of fear and confusion as he noticed that everything around him had begun to break into tiny pieces and disappear, his palace, the car, the television set, furniture, the gold, the magic lamp, even the genie. Alladin knew that no kind of signal from his brain would be able to explain this to him, and driven by fear, he ran downstairs into the front lawn, and saw everything he had, break down as he stood there, helpless. Everything he had was gone, except one thing.
Through the dense smoke, Alladin could see hints of dull colors shining in the heat. As he moved closer, he saw a painting of all the people he had turned to smoke, put together on one gigantic canvas, with the background of a clear sky and the sun. And his eyes grew wide, as he realized that what he was seeing as smoke around him, were actual people, but who were no more than smoke to him, as he built the palace of his fantasies, the palace which had just vanished right before his eyes. He knew that it was too late to want them back, yet he did. And as a drop of tear rolled down from his eye, on to his cheek and fell on his toe, his feet began to disappear, turning to smoke bit by bit, and before Alladin could even think about it, he was a puff of smoke which blew away with the hot wind.
Moments later, a huge painting stood in the middle of a smoke filled empty city, and had portraits of thousands of people in it, including Alladin. The bottom of the painting read-
Like every common man, Alladin too was a man with strong desires, big and small, real and virtual, good and bad. And just like a mosquito who does not know of any harm he causes to anyone else, Alladin was ready to bite, unaware of it though. Other than his dreams and desires, he also had friends, family, neighbors and the rest of world, just like everyone else does.
One day, on a hot afternoon, while traveling on the highway, Alladin found a lamp lying in sand on side of the road, scorching under the sun, and shining as bright as gold. As he pulled over, lifted the lamp and rubbed it to remove the patches of dirt that seemed to have covered it for centuries, smoke appeared, out came a genie and Alladin dropped the lamp out of fear. Rising to size and height, the genie said, “You are my master, and I’m your slave, and your wish…”
“…shall be my command, right? I know all that!” Alladin just finished off the genie’s statement, and the genie nodded his head in agreement. “Am I the luckiest guy on earth or what? Now I can have everything”, shouted Alladin as his voice echoed in the silence of the desert, “…everything!!!”
“There is something you must know master”, said the genie, “It is not actually the way you think it is. For anything you ask from me, I shall take one person from your city and change him to smoke, whoever your wish it to be. Not kill, just turn them to smoke.”
“What? But why??” asked the confused yet happy Alladin. “Because, everything is only a word, Master”, replied the genie, creating a short-lasting torment in Alladin’s mind.
Desires are often too strong to be given up, and a few unimportant people disappearing in thin air would not make much of a difference. Within a week Alladin had a huge palace, many servants, plasma TVs, sound systems, video games, bikes, cars, personal helicopters and a lot more. As days passed by, wealth increased inside the palace, and smoke increased outside the palace, as one by one, people of the city turned to smoke. Alladin had never been so happy before, because he believed that his family and he were very close to having everything, yet he would always come up with some or the other thing he did not have, and a reason to have one more human being blown off as smoke. He was, in fact so engaged in his leisure, that eighty days passed away without him seeing any of the people he knew or loved, or rather who loved him.
Alladin knew of every soul he had turned to smoke, and in return, had them painted on a huge canvas, which was put in the darkest corner of his palace, as he knew that guilt was not amusing. Ninety days passed by, Alladin, his family and his friends became not only the richest but the most influential people on earth now, and unsurprisingly, the joy didn’t seem to end. Alladin’s friends, however, had begun to worry that there was no end to Alladin’s wishes from the genie, and that any city was too small for a man’s desires.
On ninety-first day, Alladin asked the genie to get him a car that could fly. But the genie told Alladin that there were no more people left to be turned to smoke, and that his family and friends were the only people alive in the city other than him. It was obvious that Alladin knew such times would come. He now had a very difficult choice to make, as he was to choose the least fond from amongst his friends.
Desires are like a surprise gift, with one box inside the other, and so on, except that the boxes never seem to end here. And as you appear to get closer to the end, the desire turns into a quest which you must complete or there shall be no rest. Sacrifices are made, people are lost, and feelings are given up in the quest, with a hope to get them all back at the end of it all, but the quest must get over. Alladin was set on this quest, and all his friends and family had turned to smoke before he could end his quest, and before he could know what it is like to have everything.
On the ninety-ninth day, Alladin sat in his palace, on a golden chair, which was the first few of the things he had wished. He looked at all the valuable things around him, thinking of ways to pass his time, which surprisingly was not that easy now as it used to be a few weeks ago. He looked at the sky outside the window, and saw that the sun was not visible as there was smoke everywhere, unlike the times when he could see the clear sky even as he slept. And thoughts of the old times surrounded him, his friends, his family and the city, and how he loved them all even when he had nothing but them and his dreams. Memories brought a smile on his face, which tuned into an expression of fear and confusion as he noticed that everything around him had begun to break into tiny pieces and disappear, his palace, the car, the television set, furniture, the gold, the magic lamp, even the genie. Alladin knew that no kind of signal from his brain would be able to explain this to him, and driven by fear, he ran downstairs into the front lawn, and saw everything he had, break down as he stood there, helpless. Everything he had was gone, except one thing.
Through the dense smoke, Alladin could see hints of dull colors shining in the heat. As he moved closer, he saw a painting of all the people he had turned to smoke, put together on one gigantic canvas, with the background of a clear sky and the sun. And his eyes grew wide, as he realized that what he was seeing as smoke around him, were actual people, but who were no more than smoke to him, as he built the palace of his fantasies, the palace which had just vanished right before his eyes. He knew that it was too late to want them back, yet he did. And as a drop of tear rolled down from his eye, on to his cheek and fell on his toe, his feet began to disappear, turning to smoke bit by bit, and before Alladin could even think about it, he was a puff of smoke which blew away with the hot wind.
Moments later, a huge painting stood in the middle of a smoke filled empty city, and had portraits of thousands of people in it, including Alladin. The bottom of the painting read-
Everything is only a word
Comments
Finally your imagination is finding other avenues than the spammed list of PJs!!
Can't wait for the next post!