The Sky, the Earth, and a Boy

And so he fell. Downward, tumbling and tumbling. The sky fizzled out into a dark gray of smoke that followed him down. The smoke grew and grew, and eventually the boy could see nothing, but he knew he was still falling. So down he went; in fear, in blindness, in hope.

Finally, after an eternity of falling the boy fell numb and forget he was falling. He dreamed of what his life once was, but he had forgotten everything. He tried to draw an image of the sky or the land in his mind, but the pictures wouldn’t come. He tried to think of where he was, was this hell, or was it heaven? He was entirely at peace, yet he could feel that something, somewhere, was missing.

Eventually, he stopped falling. The signs were everywhere that his fall was coming to close, but he ignored them. He was scared. Was he prepared to return to what once was? Nature drew the cards and the boy hit ground. Hard. He cried from pain, from the blinding sky and earth around him, and from the feeling that he didn’t understand his life anymore. In the distance he could see the earth melting away. Another fall he thought, but it was darker than the first, it was more powerful, more meaningful, and more importantly he knew it was eternal.

Memories grew from the earth and fell from the sky and he watched them as he lay on his side crying. His life danced before him and he saw all the pain and hardship that he felt before. He also saw the wonderful times that he could never forget and could only dream to ever feel again. Then he thought of his fall to this revealing land and realized the smoke never blocked out the world, he simply stopped looking for it. He had given up, he stopped fighting, and he stopped caring.

It was strange, only minutes after everything in his life changed, everything in his life became clear. His life seemed so obvious. He vividly pictured not only the past, but the future. He saw his mistakes, his anxieties, his numbness, and he understood them; he accepted them. His path was clear, he can’t fall forever, that simply wasn’t a life. Choices determine life, as do pain and happiness. His tears halted mid-step and he watched the approaching darkness.

His doubt evaporated. His questions ceased. His decision was made. He had never been surer in his entire life. It wouldn’t be easy. He would have to change. He would have to ask forgiveness of the earth and sky for his treachery, his indifference. But he was ready, he was ready. So the darkness came and gave way to the earth below him. He reached his hand toward the sky and grabbed hold of it. He wasn’t sure if the sky was prepared to take him back, but he was. So off the boy went on his most difficult journey yet. He left without fear and no longer in blindness - he left in hope.