Posts Tagged s:story time

The scorching earth. Forests set ablaze, cities drowned in a fiery inferno. Anna would probably call that an exaggeration, but Monika thought it was a pretty apt description of the weather right now. It was the middle of Summer, and the world wanted everyone to know it. Temperatures were through the roof and drought had set in in a few places. Monika sat in the living room, staring out onto the fields in front of their house. The windows were wide open, but not a single gust of wind blew through them. Monika thought she could hear the hot air simmering under the burning sun, but that might have just been her imagination again. There wasn't really any particular sound, just this strange kind of general noise that lets you know it's summer, permeating through everything.

“Haaah,” Monika sighed in relief as she threw herself onto her desk chair. Her contract work was finally complete and sent out. The past few days had been a bit of a rush because of that, the deadlines always looming over her. Now that it was all over with, she had earned herself some peace and quiet. Maybe she could even read a book again for once.

Anna leaned back in her chair, shielding her eyes with a hand as she cast them up to the sky. It was a fine day in June, with only wisps of cloud between her and the glare of the sun. Not for the first time, she regretted not having brought any sunglasses with her, odd with her smart pinstripe grey jacket and matching trousers as they might have looked. She’d added a splash of colour with a pink blouse. Denner were an important client, so she’d wanted to make a good impression, as always. But it somehow didn’t seem right for a designer not to have a little something about them.

Ring… Ring… Ring… Click!

The bike rattled softly as it flew over the pavement downhill. It was early Spring and the weather seemed to be about as perfect as one could imagine. Mostly clear skies with some neat clouds decorating it here and there. Monika relished every second of this and quietly hummed a tune. Her hair fluttered in the cool wind as she descended down the hill towards the town.

There is something almost magical about a good, cool shower; as if it not only cleaned your body but also cleansed your mind, washing your troubles down the drain. Monika's head felt light on her shoulders and she was once again able to think clearly. All freshened up, she let herself fall onto her bed and watched the dust glimmer in the air for a moment. With a yank she got back onto her feet and went on to fetch her backpack downstairs. She might as well get started on the homework they had gotten. She placed her things neatly onto the living room table, and then remembered that she still hadn't eaten anything for lunch. A quick sandwich later she was finally ready to get to work.

For both Monika and Florian their ride to school went by rather quickly, although for very different reasons. Monika's head was once again filled with piercing questions about her new life, while Florian's was almost completely empty, or perhaps just filled with a mist that made everything feel dull and weary. For Florian, this was a perfectly normal situation. It took him at least three hours every morning before he was actually, truly awake. A trait he shared with his mother; anything they did before that just felt like an immense drag. Monika on the other hand simply didn't adapt well to sudden changes. Situations like these always brought her into great turmoil. Normally she wouldn't think too much about anything, which would make trips like these take much longer than it did now.

Change is a fickle thing. While it might make things a lot better, it still only actually promises to bring one thing: uncertainty. Uncertainty makes people anxious, makes them worried and stressed out, irregardless of how things are likely to turn out in the end. It isn't surprising then that in a lot of folklore, any time that brings forth change is associated with a time for demons and all sorts of other evil-bringing creatures that cause humans grief and suffering. While this story is indeed about a time of great change, it is however fortunately enough not about demons, even if looking around the room could have very well led us to believe that some sort of demon must have done his deeds here. While for some people children are indeed embodiments of the devil himself, we shall abstain from such metaphors for now.

An alternate version of the awards ceremony story. This was written independently from the same prompt.

“The sixth place goes to the Zürich Park project.” The screen showed a large photograph of an idyllic, green park. The city's crest and a building company's logo were displayed on the bottom and a short blurb explained what the goal of the project was. “Miss Eglin and Mr Furrer displayed great aptitude with their Photography and chose an excellent subject. The intent of the advertisement is clearly portrayed and it seems as if it were taken from an actual poster from our city. It is well deserving of the sixth place and will be displayed in the halls around the University” concluded the beard. Two figures stood up from the front of the rows and hurried onto the stage. As before, they shook everyone's hands, took their certificates and returned to their seats, chattering in excitement amongst each other. Applause.

With four minutes delay (Anna had counted them) the organisers of the contest entered the stage. One of them, a man with a scraggly beard, square glasses, and a suit with tie stepped up to the podium. He coughed lightly, looked around the audience and started speaking with a coarse and monotone voice.

Introductory Note: Please read the introduction to know what this is all about.

If you ever visited my personal website you might have noticed an ongoing project listed: Story Time. Since you probably have no damn idea what that is about, I'll try to explain the core ideas behind that project and what Christopher (Mithent) and I are intending to do with it.