Monday, November 27, 2006

a tale from the quest for China

One of my first friends ever was a little boy, full of energy and action and wicked little ideas.

He got it into his head that we would dig a hole in the ground in the backyard of his house. If we dug far enough, he convinced me, we would eventually emerge on the other side of the earth, which is China. "Really?" said I, eyes wide.

We had to be very careful though, because the devil lives underground, and he might find his way out through our hole. If he did, we would be in a lot of trouble.

"Maybe we shouldn't do this at all," I said in a slightly trembling voice.

"Don't worry," my friend reassured me and handed me an old ice hockey helmet. "If you wear this, he can't hurt you."

I fastened the helmet carefully, and as a typical representative of the weaker sex watched in awe as he enthusiastically worked the frozen ground with his little spade. His own helmet he carelessly left lying on the ground beside him. I admired his courage.

Ever since I was five years old I have  believed everything men tell me.  Lately, I have experienced doubt. But I still admire their courage.


Epilogue: We never reached China. Fortunately, we saw no sign of the devil either. My friend tired of the digging after a while and we went indoors to ask his mother for hot chocolate.

2 comments:

Prince K. said...

Boys have a tendency to do this...
For example, If I were vying this girl who likes to uncover conspiracy theories, then I would read up every dratted book on the subject, memorize them, and then spout out unrelated facts one after another. {Not that I don't do this normally... this comment itself is a perfect example!}
And, I feel good....

Different Pen said...

Another reason why boys are irresistible!