At Noon We Just Stand There Opposite Each Other
A small town in the old wild west. At noon we just stand there, opposite each other; me and my arch enemy.
Tumbleweed, wind, and scorching heat! “This could be the end of me,” I realize.
My sweaty hand rests on my pistol grip, all the while looking at my arch enemy standing opposite of me.
“No, I will not let it happen,” I think to myself. “This will not be the end of me!”
Then, he draws his pistol and fires.
I am hit and fall down. It is getting dark. Am I still alive?
His foul breath hits me hard. In an instant, I am back in the land of the living.
Revengeful eyes stare at me. He just keeps staring at me with his cold dark eyes, while I am still lying down on the ground.
I can’t move, don’t even know if I am alive. Is this really happening or just a very bad dream?
“You give up?” a raspy and scary voice says. “Had enough?”
“I knew you’d be coming back. They always do. These writers think they’re all that!”
“Always think they can beat me, are better than me, and just have no regard. All this putting down like I am nothing. Like I am not really there. That hurts, you know.”
Still scared but looking straight into his deformed face I say, “I am not here to take you down, but I do have to defend myself.”
Life is coming back to me and I get more confident. I wrestle myself up and now I am looking straight into his eyes. We are about the same height.
“Well, to be honest sir, you are just that; a blank page. Not to put you down or anything, but let’s call it like it is.”
I see him shrink. Just a moment ago, he seemed larger than life. That is strange.
“That is precisely what I am talking about,” he says with a shaky voice. “I get this all the time from writers like you. You treat me like I am nothing; like I don’t exist. But where would you be without me? Nothing could be written. What about that?”
“Yes,” I say. “You are right. I do need you. I couldn’t pull this off without you. But that doesn’t mean you get to scare me all the time as you please. I mean, just looking at you is enough to never ever start.”
“Let’s call it quits,” he says. “Hate to say this but it is up to you and not me. As you said, after all, I am just a blank page. I am just here to give you a space to write things down.”
“If it was that simple a lot more people would be writing,” I say. “But I have to give it to you. It is up to me. And looking at things now, you are not such a blank page anymore. You start to look good, I’d say.”
“Well thank you,” the blank page says. “But don’t start to get cocky and all. I know all too well how things will be the next time you stand opposite of me.”
A small allegory about an issue we all encounter from time to time. I hope you enjoyed reading this.
Thank you for reading and don’t hesitate to let me know what you think!
