A Little Story

by Ali Gaugh Ree

Down by a small reedy pond, there once lived a gray goose, named Akahbar. He was your average, run-of-the-mill goose. Not too smart, and not too dumb. Small in stature and a tad plump, Akahbar was not in any immediate danger of ending up as Anyone's Christmas dinner.

This nondescript goose operated a thriving pillow store. The store was not magnificent in size, but filled a niche in the surrounding pond community. Akahbar used to say, "Who needs to be magnificent, when you can be nichey, instead?" And so, content in his mediocrity, Akahbar continued to grind out those pillows, day after day.

One fine morning, while Akahbar was minding his down business and playing by all the pondy rules, hunters from a distant land came and accosted him. They were not looking for fresh meat, but wanted instead to study the plain looking goose. The hunters, a.k.a. environmental scientists, and which could have been sent by Anyone, enclosed Akahbar within a box of two-way mirrors. People could look at him from the outside, but in his prison, poor Akahbar could only gaze at his own reflection. Still, the top was open, so, he continued to operate his pillow business, as best he could. He had enough materials at his immediate disposal to construct a few marketable products each day, which he would toss over the top of the mirrored wall. In return, a few buyers on the other side would tell him how much they enjoyed those pillows, and throw money and food in his direction. But most outside the wall, refused to speak to him, harboring a secret suspicion that Akahbar could possibly be under discipline by Anyone, and perhaps even by Someone, who was rumored to be Anyone's project manager.

After several excrutiatingly lonely weeks, the foreign scientists became bored and introduced new parameters into their game, er, I mean experiment. They told Akahbar that he must choose between seeing or hearing. He would not be allowed both. Akahbar pondered this new dilemma and thought to himself, "Perhaps I can just take turns. One day I will listen, and the next day I will look. Listen. Look. Listen......"

And so the days passed. Akahbar strove valiantly and survived, but it was a terrible strain to his psyche. In the back of his mind there was always the fear that on a day he was "looking," someone would swipe his CD's. Or, on a day he was "listening," his priceless Van Gogh would be stolen. Forever. He had trouble sleeping at night. Great pools of sweat threatened to mildew his feathers. Really, it was almost too much.

Still, those on the outside tried to be helpful. They certainly felt they were being helpful. After all, they could see Akahbar. They felt close to Akahbar. Surely, Akahbar must sense their empathetic presence, even though he could not actually see them. They did not know he was only a simple goose, and could not read their well intentioned, but situationally-ignorant minds. Besides, (sigh) some of them had their own problems.

Well, our little hero pressed on, never feeling like he accomplished much, but not quite ready to pack it in and go stark, honking mad. (oh yeah, did I mention Akahbar couldn't fly? Deformed wing. Passed down on maternal grandmother's side)

After a month of this torture, the scientists actually spoke to Akahbar. "You will continue in this routine for one month more. Then we shall release you. At that time you will have full sight and hearing every day. (in the meantime we sincerely hope no one purloins your music or artwork) You shall, however, be deprived of one of your legs. Your choice. Procuration of an artificial leg will be allowed, but it must be installed by an "out-of-pond" prosthesis provider. So, like, you will owe us BIG TIME for the rest of your life." "Wah, hah, hah, hah, hah.....!"

Akahbar pondered these words, knowing full well that nothing could alter his destiny. His only respite from the weight on his barely lucid mind was to doggedly keep cranking out those pillows. And he hoped, that someday, somehow, Someone would throw a few feathers back in return. Or, maybe even someone would feel led to do so in His stead.

Akahbar waits.

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