Once upon a time, a family reminisced upon the land of their barren kraal. They painted empty stools previously accustomed to the warmth of foreign anatomy; a table holding bowls of steaming soup, their desperate faces and acres of sheer silence. Destitution domineered their canvas for there was no one else or nothing more. The world swallowed everything, leaving this one desolate family on a still journey of discovery.

With every passing sunrise, the family wondered if they were spared or punished. They reminisced on what would have brought colour to their dull canvas. Sights of smiles, a band they once saw play at the Prince’s inauguration – oh – that fine diner they visited ever so often. Maybe a stop at the Turkish who sowed such impeccable clothing or a road trip through the City of Gold. They spoke of the times they were out and the times they felt alive.

The sun had begun to fall.

They reminisced so long; the steaming soup became cold. They all laughed for with that came a realisation. They had over-complicated their lives and failed to embrace the present. Happiness could be found in the company of each other and in the sharing of steaming hot soup. Happiness could be found in the sheer silence.

They had almost let their misguided pursuit to happiness kill their joy.

Consequential to this realisation, when the world decided to return everything it had swallowed, they all lived happily ever after not because the perfection they had awaited arrived but because they knew the moment of darkness they had just been subjected to yet still found light in a circumstance that seemed all so gloomy. They had taught themselves better ways of living, they painted their lives in a manner that saw light before darkness, that empowered, that simplified, that honoured.

The End.

This piece was inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown which the country had to endure.