Daniel Klein

Nostalgia has never been necessary for me to be content. The felicity of yesteryears were incapable of compare to my present joys. To state aloud that “I missed the days when life’s fervor coursed strong!” was patently untrue. For at the present, I am more like an ox than a man. The pursuit of obtaining the splendor of the world was yet to ache my body. 

The car crash has now robbed me of the expanse of my mind. I stand now as a quiet observer unable to afford the cost of the polemics. At the peak of my earthly reign, meaning would unfold all around me with no resistance. The cherished aspirations of my life were just reaching their earned fulfillment. It would have to be admitted that only a few more years later I knew that I too was destined to yearn for nostalgia. 

Blessed with a marriage to my love, my heart’s desire was complete. With the merry laughter of my children, my soul had arrived at Elysium. At the beginning of the drive,  the statement was meant figurative. A few minutes later and the times have severely changed. Elysium is now my reality. My mind now resides here in the fields able to do all, but see. Certain am I that underneath my feet I trample upon the purest of meadows.

In this state of sightlessness, I am lost. Constantly, I ponder the nature of my affliction. Perhaps, in some unfathomable manner, I have incurred the divine’s wrath. I saw too much and now I must see nothing – all as determined by Hammurabi. Thinking that I had made some sort of progress in understanding my condition, I asked aloud whether the ancient warlord was there. Even with no response, I knew he must be somewhere hiding amongst the flowers.

The tribulations and toils that I had faced before seemed nothing to what I deal with now. This realm in which I now dwell bears not the semblance of death I had envisaged. It was neither heaven nor hell. This is a realm of happiness merely devoid of light. Somewhere there must be a switch for all to become whole.

Amidst the endless expanse of purity, I roam, a specter stripped of the world’s illumination. My movements were becoming increasingly driven forward by the noise of the past. The note piercing this oblivion is the ethereal sound of my wife’s voice. It is a reminder of a life once vibrant in color. This life still exists around me, I only must learn to see. The switch may be inside me yet. Maybe there is no switch, but rather a fault in my eyes. Abruptly, the veil lifts—I awake. My eyes, long closed to the world, open full. Reality unfolds around me. I recognize the purpose of this place, such a mundaneness could only occur in a hospital. The room, bathed in a solitary hue of gray, stands in contrast to the vivid noises of my dreams. I detest this change so. The colors, devoid of any warmth, were especially harsh to a man who was only moments before imagining idyllic meadows.. Clearly such a lack of detail meant my stay here was meant to be evascent. For what other reason would no care be made to the aesthetic. So crass of a reality against the tranquility possible in my apparent slumber generated a sense of envy. 

In the coming moments of lucidity, a yearning swells within me, a longing to return to Elysium. That mythical realm, with its fields of endless joy, where I was in solace and all the burdens of earthly existence had dissolved away. “Take me back Lord,” I whisper, a plea to the unseen force that governs my fate. “Let me once again embrace the peace and beauty of the celestial heaven. Remove me far from this mortal realm.” In my mind, I knew if offered again I would give up my sight only to hear. I still can solve the mystery I swear. I know I will see the fields some day again to roam and play.