The Sailor of the Ark.

The word got around town pretty fast. Men were relishing all their past glories, while streets were cracking under the strength of their egos. Soon came along another man; he shook his feathers and decided to set sail at the first break of light. He took along all the men who were pumping their chests and beating it like drums. He surely had a use for them. They favoured him and in eagerness they helped. This man was the one who understood their worth and let them shed away their inhibitions with the advent of a new dawn. Thus began the first step of their latest journey. There were weak ones too; ones who wanted to join this Sailor. He gladly let them shun their physical deformities and let them use their ingenuity.

Together, they picked up the thrown pieces and let the ship flow within the wood.  The debris no longer remained the debris. The streets now held tight so the ship would be strong enough to sail; finally they did not have to bear the brunt of the beasts. Slowly, not unsteadily, the large ship was stuck, built and clothed.

 As the first light of morning approached, the men gave it a push and into the thrust of the sea the ship rocked and swayed in submission. The cheers and shouts of joy from the brawn and the brain alike echoed within, around and over the ship. The man they called ‘the Sailor’ sat in his cabin and threw a smile at the men. They roared in anticipation for it was the beginning of the conquest. The journey was the gift while the prize was the world!

The ship lulled and groaned, and as the moon waxed and waned, the men moaned and spewed. They had forgotten to bring water and food in the excitement of overloading their luggage with greed, worship and blindness. One by one, the men dropped like fleas. Some jumped into the sea to taste the water, while some ate others to stay aflesh.

One man, the one they called ‘the Sailor’, looked on from the mast. Nobody noticed his shadow, for it was cast by the starlight. But if they had, he would be the first one dead. As he stood and gazed at the men, he quietly wondered...were they his responsibility or was he theirs?