Thursday, September 3, 2009

To Lose Everything

Imagine this: You're walking along a sidewalk as you begin to feel slightly "off".  You stop dead in your tracks, thinking to yourself that something is wrong.  Frantically, you pat the sides of your pants, realizing the undeniable truth: You lost your cell phone.  You quickly go over all the facts in your head: Where did I last have it?  Where could it be?  Did someone steal it?  After you search constantly for hours on end, you finally come to the conclusion that you'll never find it.  You've been beaten.  One day later, after much angry moping, you come across your phone.  Your heart skips a beat, and the butterflies in your stomach almost lift you off the ground.  Happily, you're reunited with what you desperately missed.

Now, let's take a different approach.  What was it like in that one day you dealt with having no phone?  Grueling to some, a slight inconvenience to others; but you found it, and that's all that matters.  But imagine what it would be like if you didn't find it.  Some would see this in a positive light.  "Hey, at least I can get a new phone--a better one!"  The sad truth is, though, most will just be heartbroken: "This sucks.  I'll have to pay for a new phone, get a new number, add all my contacts, and I'll never get my pictures back!"  The ending is the same for both, though: No matter what, you can get a new phone.

But what happens if you lost more than your phone?  What if you lost everything?  I mean everything.  No, not just your precious little iPod or your laptop, I mean everything: Your house, your family, your money, everything.  You'd be forced into the streets, cursed to scour and scavenge for what you could.  And even more, you'd be completely alone.  No one would be there for you; all would look upon you with contempt in their eyes, thinking you're nothing but a bum that gets drunk and high with the money you get.  The physical and emotional ramifications of such a disastrous mishap would be unimaginable.

From the beginning, it hits you like a train, and the descent into anguish and despair would be almost unbearable.  The horror is perhaps indescribable.  A terrain of hate and depression surrounds you as you drift further into an abyss of unquenchable disaster.  Could anyone truly survive this?  Sure, someone could be able to climb back up to where they were--and perhaps even further into fortune!  But could anyone ever mend the wounds that were inflicted upon them?  I feel they would be a psychological phenomenon if they could.  Humans can only endure so much before they just simply cannot take it anymore.  Who knows how many would take their own lives, and how many would just be driven mad from their ordeal?  It's a frightening prospect, and not one many can look upon with unconcerned eyes.  You'll find yourself averting your gaze and being glad to live in a world of ignorant bliss.  After all, if you don't think about it, it won't happen!

Right?

6 comments:

  1. I like the progression from misplacing something to losing everything. It's very natural and flowing. Great job!

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  2. I agree with the scars of emotional damage never fading. Some people can succeed and climb back to the top, or higher, but the memories of that all-time-low don't go away.

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  3. I like the end about averting your gaze and immersing yourself in ignorant bliss. It's true. People do not think of the worse because it is too difficult to imagine an outcome that horrifying. They also don't like to think of themselves as "the victims." Who wants to be a victim? And I mean to be a REAL victim, not just the little things for attention.

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  4. very intresting perspective on this blog!

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  5. aalso, I noticed you have Wuthering Heights as one of your favorite books... This is dis-pleasing to me and i revoke my aforesaid statement..........
    I hope your lesson has been learned Mr. lang. next time i won't be so light with the consequences.

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