A Temporary Forever

Layers of dust now caked the once-polished glossy plain of glass. Months upon months of neglect had camouflaged not simply the mirror, but the entirety of its abode as well. An ambiance of stagnant silence obscured the little left of a former place of living with a sole skylight perched as if in defiance high up on the wall. Its panes had ceded transparency, yet still retained a level of translucence just enough to allow a single intrepid sun beam to venture into the reign of gloom and grime. It seeped through, and headed straight for the alluring matte maze of dust accumulated on the mirror.

Perplexed at the odd reluctance of the glass to comply with the ray’s claim and simultaneously deeply intrigued by the fortuitous opportunity to challenge itself, the sun beam dove into meticulous exploration. Speck by speck, it poured over the surface to triumph with the projection of the most peculiar patterns on the floor. Brimming with sheer joy, the sun beam now painted exquisite shapes and intricate lace dancing around the particles of dust in a frenzy of delight but with the dexterity of a Renaissance artist brushing away a masterpiece for the generations to come. The floor, equally stamped with the sordid mark of uncleanliness, aided the beam in its quest of raising art where naught had laid before.

An exuberance of colours suddenly carpeted the ground as the sun beam had finally come across that one intact corner of the mirror that had kept its gloss and now duly reflected the light, allowing for a pastel rainbow to pour onto the floor like a fairy-tale river purling with magic. Riveted with its accomplishment the ray lingered but a moment, yet what a moment indeed. The spot where it had kissed the surface glowed like a miniature sun and sparkles effused in the air.

All the while it had busied itself with showcasing celestial artistry; the sun beam had been giving mellifluous praises to each and every one of its creations. “Beautiful”, the first patterns had been called, “Astounding!” and “Dazzling” soon followed, “Magnificent”, “Splendid” and “Marvelous” did not loiter behind. “Angelic”, the beam last proclaimed at the rainbow display and was just about to move on to some other fascinating project, when a cold voice froze it in its flow.

“What is all this clamour about?” – the words could be traced to a dark niche in the room.

The sun beam peered into the direction where the question had come from. The second it shed its warm light upon the place, something seemed to move slightly to the left. “Whatever do you mean?” – the ray quizzically inquired.

“Why occupy oneself with such empty pursuits? – the voice trailed off to a new place in the room.

Engrossed with the hide-and-seek quiz to an invigorating extent, the sun beam responded forthwith: “I see anything but emptiness. Beauty, that is all.”

A cynical sneer ensued: “Beauty is temporary, why bother with it?

“Temporary, you say,” the sun beam observed. “but to me, it is eternal.”

“Eternal… what you have created here today is anything but eternal. Mere instants of beauty as flimsy and short-lived as beauty truly is!” – the opponent did not dally to comment.

“What is the difference between eternal and temporary really?” – the sun beam was now getting somewhat weary of trying to convince a what seemed quite a bitter adversary of opinion in his or her wrong ways.

“Fundamental, essentially.” – was the derisive retort.

“If one focuses on the dimension of time, you are quite wrong, indeed. If one chooses to focus on the existential aspect of the matter, you’d be wrong again. So, quite truthfully speaking, you are all wrong. Superfluously, they guise as two different notions, yet what sets them apart is solely how one chooses to perceive and label them. What would you call our encounter today, then?” – the sun beam concluded.

“A temporary nuisance, that’s what” – the voice responded disgruntled.

A meek smile graced the sun beam’s countenance. “Good, then I will not ruin your day any further.” Gracefully, it withdrew from the mirror and flew up through the window pane and off to a new adventure.

“Good riddance”, the shadow grumbled as it filed through the dark recesses of the room and reclaimed its kingdom. Comfortable in its usual surroundings, the shadow doze off as if unmoved by what had occurred.

A vivid memory, warm as a fire, of a temporary show of light would now forever linger in his core.