, Research Paper
The Man who Stepped into Yesterday
Once upon a time, there was a mountain which rose out of a vast, green forest. and in the forest there were birds and lakes and rocks and trees and rivers. the forest was also inhabited by a small group of people called the lizards. the lizards were a simple people and they had lived in the forest undisturbed for thousands of years in utter peace and tranquillity. once a year spring came, and the first blossoms began to show, the lizards would gather at the base of the mountain to give thanks for all that they had. they thanked the birds and they thanked the lakes and they thanked the rocks and the trees and the rivers; but most importantly, they thanked icculus. icculus lived at the top of the mountain, or at least everyone thought so, for no one had ever actually seen him. but they knew he existed, because they had the helping friendly book. icculus had given the helping friendly book to the lizards thousands of years earlier as a gift. it contained all of the knowledge inherent in the universe, and had enabled the lizards to exist in harmony with nature for years. and so they lived; until one day a traveler arrived in gamehendge. his name was wilson and he was quickly intrigued by the lizards way of life. he asked if he could stay and live in the forest; and the lizards, who had never seen an outsider were happy to oblige. wilson lived with the lizards for a few years, studying the ways of the helping friendly book, and all was well. until one morning when they awoke and the book was gone. wilson explained that he had hidden the book, knowing that the lizards had become dependent on it for survival. he declared himself king and enslaved the innocent people of gamehendge. he cut down the trees and built a city, which he called prussia. and in the center of the city he built a castle, and locked in the highest tower of the castle lay the helping friendly book, out of the reach of the lizards forever.
But our story begins at a different time, not in gamehendge, but on a suburban street in long island, and our hero is no king sitting in a castle, he is a retired colonel shaving in his bathroom. colonel forbin looked square in the mirror and dragged the blade across his cold creamed skin. he saw the tired little folds of flesh that lay deep beneath his eyes. fifty-two years of obedient self-restraint, of hiding his tension behind a serene veil of composure. for fifty-two years he had piled it all on the back burner, and for fifty-two years it had boiled, frothing over in a turbulent storm inside of him. it had escaped through his eyes, reacting with the smoke and the fluorescent lights and slowly accumulated into the nape of his neck and he thought again about the door.
he had discovered the door some months back on one of his ritualistic morning walks with his dog, mcgrupp. it had started out as a typical stroll with mcgrupp bounding joyously ahead of the preoccupied colonel. as they reached the apex of the hill, he saw it, and it caught his curiosity, and he knew it had always been there, and felt foolish for overlooking it, but he soon found that it was impossible to over look it anymore, and slowly his newly acquired knowledge transformed his dreary life into a prison from which there was only one escape. and on this morning, colonel forbin stepped through the door…
passing through the corridor i came upon an ancient knight who leaned against the wall in gnarly armor, he was on his way to see the king, wilson. he led me through the streets of prussia talking as he tried to crush a bug that scurried underneath his boot heel. he said there was a place where we should go, so he led me through the forest to the edge of a lagoon by which we wandered *till we reached a bubbling spring. the knight grew very quiet as we stood there then he lifted up his visor and he turned to me and he began to sing…
he said, “i come from the land of darkness, i come from the land of doom,” he said, “i come from the land of gamehendge, from the land of the big baboon. but i*m never going back there and i couldn*t if i tried, ’cause i come from the land of lizards and the lizards they have died.”
he told me that the lizards were a race of people practically extinct from doing things that smart people don*t do, he said that he was once a lizard too. his name was rutherford the brave and he was on a quest to save his people from the fate that lay before them. their clumsy end was perilously near. the lizards would be saved, he said, if they could be enlightened by the writings of the helping friendly book. in all of prussia only one existed, and wilson had declared that any person who possessed it was a crook. the helping friendly book, it seemed, possessed the ancient secrets of eternal joy and never-ending splendor, the trick was to surrender to the flow. we walked along beneath the moon, he lead us through the bush *til soon we saw before our eyes a raging river. he said that we could swim it if we tried. and saying this the night dove in forgetting that his suit of arms would surely weigh him down and so he sunk. and as his body disappeared before me, I bowed my head in silence and remembered all the thoughts that he had thunk.
But rutherford and forbin weren*t alone, and suddenly an unexpected movement caught his eye. on the far side of the river he saw a shaggy creature standing in the weeds who stared across at forbin with an unrelenting gaze. a gigantic mass of muscles and claws, the hideous beast reared back and hurled himself in the water and swam toward the region where rutherford lay. in a flash the beast was gone, underneath the surface to the frosty depths below while forbin, bewildered, waited alone. the seconds dragged by in what seemed like hours *til finally the colonel felt it all had been a dream. defeated, he bowed his head then turned to go. suddenly, with a roar, the creature emerged before him and held the brave knights body to the sky. the creature laid the knight upon the shore and the colonel fell beside his friend in prayer that he*d survive, and rutherford, brave rutherford, was alive.
forbin and the unit monster were crouched over the soggy knight carefully removing his bulky helmet when the colonel heard a sound behind him. he turned and came face to face with an enormous, shaggy, horse-like creature covered from head to tail with alternating blotches of brown and white. it was a two-toned multi-beast, and atop the multi-beast sat the most beautiful woman the colonel had ever seen. after fifty-two years of undaunted bachelor hood, the colonel felt a feeling rush over him as he had never felt before…
the sky is burning in this lonely man, and i kneel by the river and i feel the sand and the wind. the wind from beyond the mountain. and she comes to me in this lonely land, and looks down from the multi-beast on which she rides like the wind…
tela was born in a vulgar crooked hut in the shadow of wilson*s castle. venomous scorn from the life of bitter toil, glory esteem fueled by her hatred it grew, swelling to the point where it would burst at the seems, there was nothing she could do.
tela, tela, jewel of wilson*s foul domain, a lullaby the breezes whisper. i look into her eyes and my frozen heart begins to thaw, and it burns, *til layer after layer melts away into a pool, a sky blue mirror of her eyes. my soul is made of marble, but in her gaze i crumble into dust and drift away on the wind.
tela grew strong, her struggle to endure, time touched her wounds and shelter proved the cure. each passing day seemed to feed the brazen serpent locked inside and liberate the spirit she*d concealed for so long. there was no place left to hide.
Tela reached out her hand and helped forbin onto the back of the multi-beast, and together they rode off into the forest. as they rode, tela explained to him about wilson and the helping friendly book. she told the colonel that she was part of a revolution to overthrow the evil king. the leader of the revolution was a lizard named errand wolfe who was out to avenge the death of his son roger. roger, she said, had been executed by wilson at the age of fourteen on suspicion of treason. he had been abducted from his home and hung in the public square.
the two rode on in silence, deeper and deeper into the heart of the forest until they came to the outskirts of a small community. tela explained to forbin that they had reached the base of the revolutionaries. the colonel looked up and there in the center of the clearing stood errand wolfe. he was a small man but his presence was overpowering. he seemed to emit a kind of violent energy that sent chills down the colonel’s spine. as the multi-beast moved towards him, he raised his fist in anger and his voice filled the forest…
oh, out near stonehendge, i lived alone, oh out near gamehendge, i chafed a bone. talk my duke a mountain, helping friendly book, in as far as fiefdom, i think you bad crook. i talked to my son roger, rutherford the same. when we had that meeting, over down near gamehendge. wilson, king of prussia, i lay this hate on you, wilson, duke of lizards, i beg it all trune for you. you got me back thinkin’ that you*re the worst one, i must inquire wilson, can you still have fun?
Meanwhile, in the main square in prussia, the state of the revolution was taking another turn for the worst. a crowd of people had gathered to witness the hanging of wilson*s account, mr. palmer. it seemed that palmer had been a revolutionary himself and had been exhorting wilson*s money to fund the revolution. palmer stood on the scaffold with wilson and the ac/dc bag, an electrified robot-hangman with a black bag over his head. wilson seemed pleased as he began to speak…
mr. palmer is concerned with the thousand dollar question, just like roger he’s a crazy little kid. i*ve got the time if you’ve got the inclination so cheer up palmer, you*ll soon be dead. the noose is hanging, at least you won*t die wondering, sit up and take notice, tell it like it is. if i were near you i wouldn*t be far from you i*ve got the feeling you know what you did. time to put your money where your mouth is, put *em in a field and let *em fight it out. i*m running so fast my feet don*t touch the ground, i*m a stranger here, i*m going down. let*s get down to the nitty gritty, let*s get the show on the road. i*ll so you mine if you show me yours, i*m breathing hard – open the door. brain dead, and made of money, no future at all. pull down the blinds and run for cover. who would*ve thought it, that*s where i am, no future at all, don*t sweat it, that*s where i am, whoa carry me down.
By that night, news of palmer*s death had traveled back to the camp. spirits were low and colonel forbin felt devastated.
Другие работы по теме:
The Bird Who Lives In My Ear
Essay, Research Paper Hey Tom, How are you? I?m extremely bored, so I decided to type you and several other people letters! So, how is life treating you? I?m pretty good (I know you didn?t ask me, but I?m just making conversation with myself!) I hope you can read this font. It?s kind-of different! I closed my eyes to pick it! So, did you have a lot of homework yesterday? I don?t have any.
The Lord
’s Test Essay, Research Paper * * The Lord’s Test * * I woke up this morning * * and knew that today, * * The sun would not be shining * * and the clouds would be gray.
Writing A Poem Essay Research Paper Writing
Writing A Poem Essay, Research Paper Writing a Poem It is beyond reason; there is no motive, no explanation Why it is, I do not know because there is cause, no clarification.
Creative Writing Essay Research Paper There was
Creative Writing Essay, Research Paper There was 3 men who had heard about going on a mountain and getting healed from their problems. So they all went to the mountain. The first guy from Virginia who was deaf and God asked him ‘Can I help you son?’ The guy started signing in sign language that he would be so happy if he could only hear, so God touched him and he got his hearing .
The Witness Essay Research Paper The Witness
The Witness Essay, Research Paper The Witness The dark sedan pulled quietly up outside a comfortable family home in Quarter Close. The brick residence stood silent and dark in the early
Mike Essay Research Paper Dear Michael
Mike Essay, Research Paper Dear Michael, Greetings from cyber-space! How are things going? I received your letter yesterday and thought I d give you some information about myself. My name (as you already know) is Chris Durso. I recently graduated from St. Louis University High School (SLUH), a Jesuit all-boys school in St.
Napster Essay Research Paper Ruling could doom
Napster Essay, Research Paper Ruling could doom Napster A federal court ruled yesterday that Napster must stop allowing users to swap copyrighted music. Napster officials said they would keep operating while they fought in court. Napster was created by a teenager in 1999. Napster’s software lets computer users trade audio files by connecting with one another.
Father Essay Research Paper There have been
Father Essay, Research Paper There have been many people that have had an influence on my life. My friends, family, girlfriend, and teachers all have affected my life in some way or another. I am very close to many people, all of whom have changed me in some way. None of them have had the affect that my father has had on my life.
News Essay Research Paper n an effort
News Essay, Research Paper n an effort to become the nation’s largest cable operator, AOL Time Warner (news/quote) proposed late last week to merge its cable operations with AT&T (news/quote)’s, executives close to the negotiations said yesterday.
Informal Essay On The Turn Of The
Screw Essay, Research Paper Informal Essay on “The Turn of the Screw” A young gentleman named Miles died yesterday. There are many mysteries surrounding his death. His sole protector and guardian, the Governess of Bly, claims that supernatural forces overtook the child. After the autopsy, I found her accusations to be nonsense.
Drama Program Acceptance Essay Research Paper I
Drama Program Acceptance Essay, Research Paper I fell in love with acting the moment I first stepped on stage as Laertes when I was sixteen. Since then, both my attitude toward and interest in the dramatic process have only increased. This semester, I was able to take my first drama class here at Duke. Jay Oberski, who is my teacher for Drama 99S, has only added to my love of the stage by showing me just how much fun one can have while acting.
Today And Yesterday Essay Research Paper
“A Vindication of the Rights of Woman” was written over 200 years ago. However, if it were not for some of the language clues I quite possibly could have been led to believe that this paper was written yesterday. Women today are still struggling with the issues spoke of in the paper.
Nature Trail Essay Research Paper During lab
Nature Trail Essay, Research Paper During lab our class took a trip to the nature trail. As soon as we stepped on to the trail we saw disturbance from the hurricane that came through about three years. Throughout
Creative Writing Essay Research Paper When I
Creative Writing Essay, Research Paper When I first stepped into this class I did not know what to expect. It was the second class of my first day in Brooklyn College. When I came in the room I wanted to sit in the front of the room so that I would be able to concentrate on the teacher, but the first row was already fill up so I took the second best thing and sat in the second row.
Poem Preschool Good Or Bad Essay Research
Paper On the way home we had talked about what a night we had. We knew that this would be a memory that we would have for the rest of our life. We pulled into my driveway and I stepped out of the car into the cold air. As I opened the door to my house I realized that I had just encountered one of the most exciting times of my life.
Nathan Hale Essay Research Paper Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale Essay, Research Paper Nathan Hale When a country is in time of need, certain individuals rise among their people and take control, thereby becoming martyrs and heroes. During the American Revolution the colonies were in great need of leaders, and Nathan Hale stepped up and succeeded. Hale served as lieutenant and captain in the colonies’ Continental army.
Eleven Essay Research Paper The author Sandra
Eleven Essay, Research Paper The author Sandra Cisneros, captures the innocence and insecurity of a teennageer named Rachel, that experiences a mixed of emotions during scholl when
Dont Forget Essay Research Paper It is
Dont Forget Essay, Research Paper It is not a thing of the past, rather a clear vivid image I remember, I remember as if it had happened yesterday. We were called to go fight, Go to Europe and liberate.
Jesus Loves U Essay Research Paper In
Jesus Loves U Essay, Research Paper In His Memories I remember the hour before my graduation ceremony like it was yesterday. The most memorable day of my life came to an abrupt stop as m y grandfather hit the ground at the bottom of the steps. All I heard was a thump and then a crack. Because of my grandpa’s death, I have learned to enjoy every day that I am alive.
The Leaf Essay Research Paper Hello my
The Leaf Essay, Research Paper Hello, my name is leaf. I just came from Akron, Ohio and here I am in the Barnhart?s front yard. Here?s how I got here. There was a scrubby looking man who was walking to the mall and I got stuck to the bottom of his shoe. He walked into an auto parts store and as he stepped on the carpet to wipe his feet off I fell from his shoe.
Social Evils Essay Research Paper December 15
Social Evils Essay, Research Paper December 15, 1998 Social Evils Because I was brought up in a protected environment, it wasn’t until I was seventeen or eighteen when I learned of the evil prejudices that are in our world. Today isn’t as bad as yesterday, and hopefully tomorrow will be even better, but we must be reminded of our wrongdoings, so that they do not happen again.
Summary Essay Research Paper Summary
Summary Essay, Research Paper Summary 10-16-96 By Rick R. Lopez The American family today, has the same problems that the American family of yesterday had. Daniel A. Sugarman, a psychologist in “Family Practice” introduces us to several case studies that seem to be the main nucleus of family problems today.
Yesterday
’s Mistakes; Today’s Lessons Essay, Research Paper Yesterday’s mistakes; today’s lessonsThe Scarlet Letter is certainly relevant to today’s teenage parents. The novel shows the hardships of being scorned by the public. In addition, it shows how one can succeed despite public attitudes and opinions.
Todays Women Vs Yesterday
’s Essay, Research Paper Today’s Woman Vs. Yesterday’s Women of today have come a long way since the periods portrayed in the dramas “Trifles,” written by Susan Glaspell, and “Doll House,” written by Henrik Ibsen. In both dramas, the characters
Sesame Street Drug Trip Essay Research Paper
I see the world, With eyes of yesterday, The fear of death lies around the corner, The smell of drugs on the street, You lie there, Your friends laughing, You, you are crying,
Explorers Of Yesterday And Today Essay Research
Paper Explorers: Yesterday and Today The world is always making new progress and discovering new ideas. People are needed and to discover new places. Like the first European explorers, astronauts of today must go where no man has gone before. Both of them must conqueror their fears of dying by trying to discover beyond what most already know.
The Old Man And The Sea An
Analysis Essay, Research Paper The Old Man and The Sea: An Analysis I read this book for the first time in high school and I remembered it just as well as if I had read it yesterday. As I read it again I remembered some of the
After The Accident Essay Research Paper After
After The Accident Essay, Research Paper After The Accident What? I said with disbelief. There s no way! It can t be! I was twenty-three when I lost him. My heart s been afflicted with sorrow before but not as much as losing him. I still remember that cold January day like it was yesterday. A coroner and a policeman came knocking at my door.
My Traffic Accident Essay Research Paper My
My Traffic Accident Essay, Research Paper My traffic accident. It was just an other rainy day. I was going to the mall with my brother to get some batteries for his toy cars. As I was walking out of the door my mother said Drive carefully son it s awfully slippery out their , in her kind and gentle voice.I ignored her like always but just replied, Yes mother I will! After buying some energizer batteries from the mall we headed back home.
Capital Punishment Essay Research Paper Capital PunishmentI
Capital Punishment Essay, Research Paper Capital Punishment I believe that capital punishment should not only be enforced but it should be stepped up and more widely practiced. Too many bad people are filling the prisons, wasting taxpayer?s money; the situation is only getting worse. The criminals in today?s prisons aren?t being rehabilitated or made to feel sorry for their wrongs, they are trained to be better criminals.
The Park Essay Research Paper A couple
The Park Essay, Research Paper A couple of months ago I went to the park with my nephew. I remember the day like is was yesterday. The weather was cool and clouds were overhead. I sat by myself and watched him play and watched everything happen around me. I wasn?t expecting to find so many interesting things just watching people, but amazed at what I did discover.