The Life Unknown

Christopher was beginning to grow tired of his daily routine, and of the way that his life had unfolded up to this point. “Wake up, work, eat, sleep, repeat,” he thought to himself, “that’s all I ever do.” What Christopher truly enjoyed were his strolls through town, where he walked at a leisurely pace in the present. This is what Christopher did best. He would breathe the fresh air, smile at the sunshine, smell the roses, petunias, and other flowers that he passed. He’d wave at the trees and imagine their branches were waving back to him. He saw upside-down worlds through the reflections of the canals which columned the town like the spaces between paragraphs.

Part I: The Bridge

It was a particularly cold Spring morning. Christopher was on his usual walk to work when he saw from afar what seemed to be a bookseller on a long canal bridge. Christopher had never seen this person before but he knew this bridge well, as it is his second favorite spot to relax and enjoy an afternoon tea.

“I’ve been meaning to get a new book,” Christopher said to himself, “a new perspective would be nice.” Off he went, curious to see if he could find what he was looking for.

As he approached, Christopher’s eyebrows rose. The book cart was made of old burnt wood, and had two wheels on the back with a single arm extended in front, almost like a wheelbarrow. The books were lined along three shelves which sat on top of a cabinet of sorts, while a decorated umbrella hung above the cart which generously provided shade to any interested buyers. The seller, who faced the opposite direction, was wearing a black cloak with strange geometry stitched down the spine.

“Hello there!” Christopher said. The seller did not say a word, did not even flinch. Perhaps the reflections of the water were too mesmerizing to hear him. “Your cart is very unique,” trying again for attention, “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

The bookseller turned around; to Christopher’s surprise it was a young woman. Everything she wore was black except for a green scarf woven with what looked like silk. An emerald pendant with a gold chain hung at her chest. Her hair was crystal white, and shined brightly among her clothing. Her eyes were a vibrant green, surrounded by a small ring of yellow. There was something about this woman that made her fascinatingly different from anyone that Christopher had ever met before.

“I built it myself.” The woman replied. “How may I help you?”

“I’m looking for a new book. Not one in particular, but looking to gain a new perspective on life.”

The woman smirked as her attention switched over to the display. “Take a look and see if there’s anything that catches your eye.”

Christopher browsed, but none grabbed his attention. Some had interesting titles such as “The Lemonade Train” and “Dark Matter: Secrets and Theories”. His interest was fading, but the woman noticed his shift in energy.

“Nothing special I see, perhaps you’d be interested in my magic section.”

Tilting his head, Christopher wasn’t sure if he heard her correctly. The woman giggled as she kicked the rear of the cart. The front cabinet door flung open followed by a cloud of dust. Inside laid a stack of books, all of which were gutted with old, ruffled paper and covered in leather.

“This is interesting.” Christopher said sarcastically.

“Indeed, it is,” the woman played along, “these books are very special. They each hold different powers within them.” Christopher rolled his eyes in disbelief, and began to think that this woman was crazy.

As if she read his mind, she slowly leaned into the shade of the umbrella. As the darkness crept over her face, she physically started to change! Wrinkles surfaced to her skin while hair grew dark and rugged. Her eyes beamed of pure yellow, and in a raspy voice she whispered, “any of these books will give you the perspective you seek.”

Christopher couldn’t believe what he was seeing! He looked around to see if there was anybody else who could have witnessed this, but only the two stood on the bridge. “This can’t be real! Are you a witch?”

The bookseller grinned. “It does not matter what I am.” Her tone confirmed Christopher’s question. “What matters is what you came here for. Any of these books will give you what you desire most. Pick one.” She ordered.

Shocked, Christopher hesitantly chose one. A little black book small enough to fit in his back pocket. Christopher tried for his wallet, but the witch interrupted his movement. “Free of charge! All I ask is that whatever you find within the pages, you share with me.” In a daze and not understanding her request, Christopher agreed with a nod, then left.

“The further away from her the better” he felt.

A small clock tower stood at the end of the bridge, which read 5 past the hour. Reality quickly returned as Christopher realized he was late for work, and started to run.

Part II: The Boss

Christopher hurried into the estate house where he worked. It was quiet inside. He quietly tried to close the door behind him, but the click of the handle sounded across the halls.

“CHRISTOPHER!” A voice immediately belted from the other side of the house. “GET TO MY OFFICE, NOW!”

“Here we go again.” He complained to himself. This was his fourth time being late this month. Christopher’s shoes tapped the checkered marble floor which echoed through the house. Wondering how he would handle this situation, Christopher imagined that Mister Witz would berate him for an hour then most likely fire him.

Mr. Witz was a loud, power-hungry man. Although he was usually the shortest in the room, he was also the feistiest, and had no problem speaking his unfiltered mind. All he cared about was money. Because of this, and his height, Christopher and he never saw eye to eye.

Up the winding staircase and down the corridor, Mister Witz sat, steaming at his desk, with his face the color of a ripe tomato. Christopher didn’t make it halfway down the hall before Mr. Witz started grunting.

“LAzy!..IrresPONsible!..UngGRATEful!”

“Late?” Christopher suggested as he closed the office doors behind him.

“LAAAAAATE!” Mr. Witz scolded back. The force of the scream shook the room and nearly swung the office doors open again.

“I demand to know why you are LATE, yet AGAIN! Did you get LOST on another one of your leisurely WALKS about the TOWN!?” They both knew that this was Christopher’s last day at work.

Christopher felt the book in his pocket, and a thought came to him: “Telling him the truth would be rather funny, wouldn’t it?”

“Well yes, Mister Witz, but this walk was rather peculiar. I met a bookseller in town on a canal bridge, and it turned out that this person was, in fact, a witch.” Veins were now bursting from Mister Witz’s temples.

“The witch had a magic book section, and I chose one for myself. It’s right here in my pocket.” Christopher pulled out the book as evidence. Mister Witz, meanwhile, was imploding.

“Hence my tardiness.” He concluded with a smile. “I suppose I’ll be on my way.” Before Mister Witz could get a word in, Christopher opened the office doors and left the room.

An explosion of sound burst behind him as he entered the hallway, Christopher couldn’t help but laugh. The bellowing continued as he walked out the front door, which slammed shut behind him.

Part III: The Book

Christopher decided to go to his favorite spot to relax: a beautiful garden buried in the hills which overlooked the town. It was fenced off, but Christopher never saw any harm in occasionally hopping over.

This was his favorite spot because it was quiet and peaceful. The sun shined brightly; it was a beautiful day. Birds were synchronously dancing in the sky, and Christopher’s eyes followed as they flew over a nearby tree. He saw squirrels playing on the naked branches, which were beginning to sprout with buds of green. The green reminded him of the witch; Christopher grabbed book.

“Funny,” he thought “I haven’t even opened this yet my life has already changed.” He opened its leather seal and read the first page:

The book of life is given to those

who perhaps find life in the life unknown.

If the book holder chooses the life unknown,

They may not return to the life that they know.

Now make your choice, as you have been chosen.

The Life Known. The Life Unknown.

Christopher flipped through the book, but the pages were empty. “Great, it was all a joke.” He was beginning to think that the whole day was a terrible mistake, until he discovered a charcoal pencil tucked inside the back cover. His heart skipped a beat as he flipped back to the first page. “The Life Unknown? Maybe that’s what I’ve been searching for.”

Christopher paused for a moment. “The Life Unknown it is.”

He circled his choice, sat the book down, and waited. He looked around: no witches, no dark clouds of lightning, no nothing... hours passed without a single occurrence.

“This was definitely the most well thought out joke of all time.” He grunted out of frustration. His mind raced. “What am I going to do? How will I live? I have no job, no money!” His heart became heavy as he picked up the book and hucked it across the garden. The pages ruffled as they cut through the air, and he fell to his knees as the book thumped the ground behind him.

The breeze sifted through the garden, causing what sounded like leaves to fall from the trees above, but that didn’t take away from Christopher’s self-pity.

The breeze intensified, as did the sound of ruffling.

“Leaves,” he thought, “I saw buds in the trees. There were no leaves!”

Christopher spun around and to his amazement, money was falling from the sky! Cash scuffled throughout the garden in a paper trail that led to the book. Christopher shot towards the book, and opened it. Money! MONEY! Hundreds, thousands of dollars stuffed in between the pages!

Christopher howled in excitement. He picked up the money that blew through the garden and ran towards town, counting along the way. The bills collected from the ground alone totaled $20,000. Christopher was too ecstatic to calm down. “I’m rich!” He shouted in excitement, “What am I going to do with all this money!?”

Noticing the time of day, Christopher realized that he would have been returning from work about then, and remembered his deal with the witch. “I’ll give her this $20,000 and keep the rest. All the money is mine!” He cheered to himself.

He rushed to the bridge and saw her as she was before, gazing at the canal’s reflections and basking in the afternoon sunlight. She noticed Christopher right away, as he was a different person than he was earlier that day. Christopher was about to pull the $20,000 from his pocket, but a thought crossed his mind.

“This is the first time I’ve ever stopped on this bridge coming home, without enjoying my afternoon tea.” Christopher grabbed the book and opened to the front page:

‘who perhaps find life in the life unknown.’

“Perhaps I was wrong.” Christopher contemplated, “Perhaps, ‘The Life Unknown’ isn’t where I find more life…I feel like Mister Witz…I won’t live like this. I prefer a life where I enjoy the right things, rather than obsessing over the wrong ones.”

The sun was setting, and the witch smiled as her beauty slowly faded away.

“Thank you, miss. What lies in the pages is yours.” He handed her the book.

Christopher strolled home a rich man that night. Not from the $20,000 dollars, but because he got what he was looking for: a new perspective on life.