The Blue Bird

There was a world of mist where time stood still. The sky was always grey and there were never any clouds or sun shine. There was grass as far as the eye could see. The grass was not green, it was grey and it never grew. There were no animals, trees, or plants in this timeless world. However, it was not a place without life, for there were two humans who lived in this world. One of the humans was male, the other was female. The male and female had brown tan skin, even though sun light had never touched them once in their lives. They both had black hair; the male had brown eyes, while the female had green eyes. Their bodies were perfect in every sense of the word, for they had not one physical flaw inside or outside their bodies.

Both the male and female were very beautiful. They did not realize this, since they lived in a world where beauty had no meaning. The male and female had no names and they were simply called Man and Woman by the one who watched over them. They lived in a small grey house which had only one bed room and a kitchen. There were no other rooms in the house because the man and woman had no need of any other rooms. All they had to do was eat and sleep in order to survive.

There was no stove in the kitchen, just a white table, two white chairs and a sink for washing their hands. The house had only four windows, two in the kitchen and two in the bed room. Looking out of them was useless, because there was nothing to see except endless grey mist. The walls of the house were grey and so were the floors and ceiling. The outside of the house was also grey except for the white chimney on its roof. The bed that the man and woman slept in was also grey except for its blue pillows. Even the clothes that the man and woman wore were grey. The man and woman never noticed the differences in the colors though, because everything looked the same to them. They never saw the differences in anything except each other, they knew they were different but they did not know why. Their clothes were on them all the time even when they slept; they didn't understand how different they really were, they just knew.

The man and woman had no idea how old they were. Every day was the same and they never kept track of the time that passed because to them there was no time, since there was no change. Everything was always the same to them. Every day had no real difference from the next; there were never any special occasions which made certain days different. The man and woman did not even celebrate their own birthdays, they had no idea what a birthday was and they had no idea when they had been born.

The man and the woman never had a single day that was different from the other. Every day they would wake up from bed, give each other a good morning kiss and then they would go eat breakfast. Even though there was no food, plates or forks in the house, when they woke up there would be the finest breakfast on the table waiting for them. Like everything else in their life, breakfast would always be the same. They would always have two glasses of milk and water, bacon, pancakes, eggs and ham. Once they were done eating they would leave the table, go outside and run around their house, until they were too tired to run anymore. Then they would go back into their house and go to the kitchen. They would always find the remains of their breakfast gone and in its place a great lunch. The lunch always consisted of peanut butter sandwiches, crackers, roast beef, and two cups of lemonade. When the man and women were done eating lunch they would go to their bedroom and meditate together. When they felt hungry again they would go back to the kitchen, and in place of the remains of their lunch there would be a huge dinner waiting them. The dinner would always consist of pasta, chicken, bread with butter and two glasses of water.

When the man and woman were done eating they would go to bed and fall asleep; they would repeat the whole process when they woke up again. They also never dreamed, since nothing in their lives ever happened that gave them cause to dream. It was an endless cycle, and the man and woman never wished for it to be broken or for any part of it to be changed.

The man and the woman did have the ability to speak. However, since nothing ever changed and since everything was always the same they never had much to talk about. There were many days that passed when they never spoke a single word to each other; their bond was so strong that they didn't need any words to strengthen it. They also loved the endless silence that surrounded them and never once did it bother them. Things had always been like this and there was nothing that needed changing. But change did come; it all started one day when the woman woke up and gave the man a kiss on the forehead, which he gladly returned. The woman then said, "Good morning."

The man looked very confused as he replied, "What is morning?"

The woman kissed the man's forehead again and replied, "I don't know, I think it's the time when we first wake up after being asleep."

"I don't understand how do you know this?"

"I don't know; I just do."

"I see, well then it's time for us to eat. So can we get out of bed now?"

"Yes of course, strange though I just noticed that you always sleep on the right side of the bed while I sleep on the left. Next time when we go to sleep, can you sleep on the left side and let me sleep on the right side?"

"If that's what you want to do that's fine."

After the man said this he and the woman got out of bed and went to the kitchen to have breakfast. Their breakfast was there for them at the kitchen table like always, and it was exactly the same like always. They both sat down and started eating their breakfast. While they were eating their breakfast the man suddenly said, "You know, whenever we eat our first meal we always have the water first and the milk second. Since we haven't touched our drinks yet, maybe we should have the milk first and the water second."

The man and woman drank their milk first and their water second, and then went outside to run around their house. They ran around their house for a while and then they suddenly stopped to look at the chimney. The woman said, "I never knew the chimney looked different from the rest of the house before."

"Neither did I; I wonder why it is different."

"We must have been running around this house our whole lives. Why is it now at this moment, we notice that the chimney is different from the rest of the house?"

After the woman said this, she and the man stood still for a few moments; then they continued running around their house until they were too tired to run anymore. They went back into their house for lunch, and as always their lunch was there in place of the remains of their breakfast. They sat down and ate lunch for a while in silence. While they were eating, they both ate their food in a different order than they normally had before. They did not know why, they just did. Once they were done eating, they went to their bedroom to meditate. While they were meditating with their eyes closed, the man suddenly stopped and opened his eyes and said, "Why, do we do this all the time after we have eaten our second meal?"

The woman opened her eyes and replied, "I don't know, but it is very relaxing isn't it?"

"Yes, yes it is, tell me do you think we should call it something?"

"Yes I think we should, do you have any names for it?"

"No I don't, do you?"

"How about we call it meditation?"

The man closed his eyes, smiled and said, "That sounds good to me."

The woman closed her eyes, and she and the man continued meditating until they were hungry again. They went to the kitchen to have dinner. When they got there they found that as always that the remains of their lunch were gone, and in its place was their dinner. The man and woman sat down and ate their dinner in silence for a few moments; then suddenly the man said, "What is your favorite meal?"

"My favorite meal is the first meal we have when we get up in the morning."

"Do you think we should give the three meals we have names?"

"Yes I think we should, why don't we call this meal dinner and the meal before it lunch and the meal before that breakfast."

"Those sound like good names for the three meals we eat."

After the man said this, he and the woman finished eating dinner and went to bed. The man slept on the left side of the bed, while the woman slept on the right side of the bed. They both tried to fall asleep, but found themselves unable to. So they just laid down in silence for a few moments before the man said, "Today was a very unusual day wasn't it?"

"Yes it was, hmm I wonder how we both suddenly knew that today was different from those that came before it. How come we suddenly notice these things now?"

"I don't know; this is all very confusing isn't it?"

"I am sure we will figure things out together."

"Do you think we will know more, and notice more things when we wake up in the morning?"

"Something tells me there is a strong chance we will, but then again we may not. Either way we will find out tomorrow when we wake up."

The man and woman laid down in bed a few more moments, and fell asleep. Like all the other nights they had fallen asleep during their lives, they did not dream. However, they came close, because while they slept a few random images flashed through their minds. The images disappeared as soon as they came, and when the man and woman awoke, the next morning they had forgotten them. As soon as the man and woman awoke, they said good morning and kissed each other's foreheads.

The man and woman then got out of bed and went into the kitchen to have breakfast. Their breakfast was their waiting for them as always. However, the two of them saw something they had never seen before. A small blue bird was flying around the kitchen, and the man and woman had no idea what to do. The blue bird landed on one of the breakfast plates and started eating some of their food. The man and woman walked closer to it, until they were standing so close to the table that they could touch it.

For a while, neither the man nor the woman spoke. Then the man said, "What is this thing?"

"I don't know, but it is extremely beautiful."

"Yes it is, but still I would really like to know what it is."

"I am sure will both figure it out eventually. For now, let's just watch it see what it does next."

Suddenly the blue bird stopped eating and flew out of one of the kitchen windows. The man and woman ran out of the house and searched for the blue bird. They found it standing on top of the chimney. They both looked at it for a while, and then the man said, "How long do you think it's going to stay up there?"

"It will stay up there until it feels like coming down again. So how about we go back inside, and eat breakfast, then come back out here and check on it."

"But what if it's gone when we come back out?"

"There is nothing else here, so I don't know where it can go to except to another part of the outside of the house, or the inside of the house."

"If there's nothing else out there, then where did this thing come from?"

The woman found that she could not find a reply to the man's question. The man tried to come up with an answer on his own, but found that he could not. He and the woman then went back inside their house, drank all their water and milk, and ate all their food. Except for the pieces of food the blue bird had touch. They then went back outside and the blue bird was still standing on top of the chimney. The man and woman looked at the blue bird for a few moments and then began their daily run around the house. They ran around their house until they were too tired to run around it anymore; when they were done, the blue bird was still there. However, it had moved and was no longer standing on their chimney. Instead it was now standing on their roof, looking down at them with curious eyes. The woman said, "I don't think it's afraid of us, it's just as curious of us, as we are of it. I think if we had some food, it would come down to us."

"Should we go to our house and see if our lunch is there?"

"I think that would be a wise idea."

The man and woman started walking back to their house. Suddenly, the blue bird flew off the roof and landed on the woman's shoulder. They were both quite shocked by this new development, but they decided to go back inside their house and have lunch. While they ate lunch they tried to feed some pieces of the food to the blue bird. It was not interested since it was still very full from its breakfast.

After the man and woman were done eating, they went to their room to meditate. As soon as they went inside their room the blue bird flew off the woman's shoulder and landed on the foot of the bed. The man and woman meditated for a while, and the blue bird watched them. Suddenly the woman opened her eyes and said, "I just realized something."

The man opened his eyes and replied, "What have you realized?"

"This blue thing could not have come from this world. All there is in this world is the mist and this house. There is nothing else, there never has been and there never will be. Therefore, it must have come from somewhere else."

"But where could it have come from?"

"I think it comes for another world."

"I don't understand, how do we know that there is another world besides this one. How do we know that this thing did not just appear out of thin air?"

"Did we just appear out of thin air?"

"I don't know, I can't remember the moment I became aware of my own existence, or yours. All I remember is being in this house with you, and doing the same things all the time. Maybe the two of us have just always existed, and there was never a moment where we did not exist. Maybe it's the same case with this thing that is now standing on our bed. Maybe it has always existed like us, and we just didn't notice it until now."

"Perhaps that is true, but I just don't think we have existed forever. There had to be a time when we did not exist. I just can't believe that the two of us, this house and this world of mist are all that exists. There has to be something more than this."

"If there is, something tells me we will never know; I mean how we can? I see no way for us to leave this world."

"Why don't we try walking away from our house tomorrow, and see if there is anything else beyond it. Maybe we will find ourselves in another world, where there is much more than this one."

"Are you sure that would be a good idea? We have never been more than a few feet from the house before. We have no idea what will happen."

After the man said this, the woman stood up and kindly stroked the right side of his face with her right hand and said, "We will be fine, trust me."

The man nodded, he and the woman left their bedroom and went into the kitchen. The remains of their lunch were gone, and their dinner was waiting for them. They sat down and started eating it. Then the blue bird flew in from their room and landed on the table. The man and woman fed it some very small pieces of bread, and it gladly ate them. Once the man and woman were done eating dinner, they walked back to their bed room. The blue bird flew from the table, and landed on the man's shoulder. The man went with it, and walked into the bedroom along with the woman. The moment they were in the bedroom the man said, "What side of the bed do you want to sleep on tonight?"

"The right side, tell me how are you going to sleep with that thing on your shoulder?"

"I'm sure when I sit down on the bed it will fly off my shoulder and go somewhere else."

After the man said this the blue bird flew off his shoulder, and landed on the bed. The man and woman looked at it for a few moments, and then they sat down on the bed. The blue bird stood still, and the man and woman gently patted its head. The blue bird made some small sounds that showed it was happy. After the man and woman were done patting it, the blue bird flew off their bed and landed on top of their bedroom door and fell asleep on it. The man and woman looked at the blue bird for a few moments. Then the man said, "This thing should have a name."

"I can't think of any names for it, can you?"

"I think that blue should be a part of its name. Maybe we should call it the blue thing."

"It's not a thing, it's alive like us. So it should not be called a thing. Why don't we call it the blue animal?"

"What's an animal?"

"Something that's alive like us, something that eats and drinks and sleeps. That's what an animal is, I just wish I knew how I came to know this, but I don't."

"Does it matter how we have come to know things? The point is that we know them and that is something we should both be extremely grateful for."

"I guess you're right, still though, I wish that we just knew where our knowledge came from. Anyway, I think we should call this animal a blue animal until we come up with a better name for it."

"I think I already have come up with a better name for it."

"What is it?"

"I think we should call it a blue bird. I don't know why we should call it that, but something in my heart tells me that would be the right thing to call it."

"Alright then, we'll call it a blue bird. Tomorrow we will walk away from the house, and see what else there is. Do you think will be able to find anything?"

"Will find out tomorrow, won't we?"

When the man and woman were done talking they fell asleep, and for the first time in their lives they had a dream. They both had the same dream; it was a simple and short dream. It was a dream of the blue bird flying around their house again and again, until a light opened in the sky and blue bird flew into it and disappeared. It only lasted for a few minutes, and when the man and woman awoke they forgot about it. As soon as the man and woman awoke, they said good morning to each other and kissed each other's foreheads.

The man and women looked at their bedroom door and saw that the blue bird was gone. They quickly got out of bed and ran to the kitchen and saw that the blue bird was standing on their kitchen table along with their breakfast. The blue bird was not eating any of it. It was just standing there waiting for the man and woman and to join it. The man and woman gently patted the blue bird on its head again, and ate breakfast. When they were done eating breakfast, they got out of their house and stood in front of it looking at the endless gray mist before them. The woman said, "So do you think we are ready to do this?"

The man quickly looked at the house one last time, before replying, "Yes, we have been living here for far too long, it's time to see what lies beyond the mist. Besides, as long as I have you with me, I am not afraid to go anywhere."

Before the woman could reply to the kind words, the blue bird flew off the house and landed on the woman's shoulder. The man and woman then held hands, so they wouldn't get separated in the grey mist. They walked for a few moments and suddenly found themselves right back at their house. The man and woman were not scared by this, just a little confused and disappointed. The man said, "We were walking away from it, and yet in just a few steps we arrived back at it. I guess this house is the only thing that exists in this world besides you, me, and the blue bird."

The blue bird flew off her shoulder and landed on the roof of the house. The woman looked at the blue bird and the house for a few seconds and then responded, "I guess you are right. There is nothing but us, this house, and no other place or world. This is all there is and it's a shame, because I thought there had to me more."

The man looked at the woman with loving eyes, and gently squeezed her hand while saying, "Would it really be so bad if this was all there is was; I mean isn't this enough for you?"