but as time went by, the red eye stayed longer and longer. It seemed to enjoy annoying her. Sometimes it frightened her. Sometimes it came and went, like it faded in and out. Most of the time, it just hung around all day. It didn’t bother her when she had personal things to do, but it did sit on the kitchen cabinet when she cooked, just watching, of course; it didn’t talk, just stared. She stated she was kind of getting used having it around, but it still scared her sometimes. She stated she feels like she is being analyzed for something. She tried talking to it and asking it questions, but it never indicated that it understood what she is saying. Sometimes when she talked to it, she gets a nod or a shake, whatever that meant. She wondered if it would always be in her life or if it would get tired and go back where it came from. At one time, she tried to ignore it. No luck. Then one time, she tried to run it out. Again, no luck. It seemed like she was the only one that could see it, or if others could see it, they wouldn’t talk about it At least, no one stared at her like she was crazy with a big red eye following her around. Apparently, it was invisible to other people.
As time went by, she almost forgot about the eye. Sometimes it would show up in unexpected places. Like she was attending a friend’s wedding, and there it was, on the altar. She almost gasped out loud but managed to cover it up with a cough. As years went by, the girl became older. She never married. She said she felt like she already had a husband in some ways. The eye never helped her in anyway, just stared. Close to the end of her life, she wondered why the eye stayed around. It never changed the way it looked and certainly never looked any older. She remembered the first she saw it and how afraid of it she was. As she thought back, over the years, she realized it had never harmed her, never forced her to do anything. It just followed her around. As she lay on her deathbed, with the eye on the footboard, she heard a loud boom, and the eye disappeared. At the same time, my friend drew her last breath. We would never know why she was followed around by a red eye all her life. We thought she might have been studied by someone from another planet. After all, he never spoke to her or indicated to her that he knew her. So we just assumed he was from outer space. No one has ever seen anything like it since.
Haunted House
In the ancient city of Hubardard, a very rich and mean man lived. No one wanted to go by his house. To begin with, it was ugly, and the grass and weeds had taken over the yard. The windows were covered with thick vines, and the gate hung off its hinges; it had a desolate feel about it. All the children in the town were afraid that an evil witch lived there. Their parents did nothing to disclaim this. In fact, they threatened the children with sending them there when they were bad. The man’s name was never spoken, so no one knew his name. No one had ever seen him, so no one knew what he looked like. Everyone assumed that he was rich, mean, and ugly; it never occurred to anyone that he might be young and poor. The story had been passed from family to family for as long as anyone knew.
One day, a small boy who was new to the town was walking by the house, and before anyone could tell him no, he walked up the decrepit walk an rang the bell. Slowly, the door opened a crack.
All the boy could see was two eyes staring down at him. He did not turn away but smiled at the eyes. Slowly, the door opened wider, and a hand gestured the boy into the house. Without hesitation, he entered. All the children on the sidewalk gasped and turned to run home to tell their parents to call the police. The young boy walked into the room, which was as bright as day. All the lights in the room were turned on. The man spoke softly to the young boy. He asked the boy to have a seat and would he like to have something to eat or drink. The boy was so astonished that he could not answer. The man smiled and chuckled. “Cat got your tongue?”
The boy jumped, startled at the sound of the man’s voice. It was soft and kind. The boy blinked he eyes and said, “You are not what I expected to see.”
“And what was that?” The man laughed and laughed.
“Well, you see,” the boy answered, “everyone thinks you are old and mean.” The man laughed and laughed. The boy stared at him in wonder as if he had never seen someone laugh so much. Suddenly, the boy burst into laughter!
“I never…” the boy started to say.
“I know,” the man said. “Everyone thinks I am a mean, old man, but now you know different, and you can tell them the truth, I will tell you my story.” The man started the story. “Once upon a time, I had a mother and father just like you have. We had a wonderful life. We were always laughing and having fun. My father was a very rich man, and he loved my mother and me very much. He loved to help the people who needed his help.
“One day, an evil man came to this town and took my mother away. My father was very sad. He looked and looked everywhere for her. He hired police and private investigators to hunt for her. We never found her or any trace of her. After so many years, my father never gave up looking for her, even though everyone thought she was dead. Father was so sad and heartbroken. Finally, after so many years of sadness, his health foiled him, and he died, still loving my mother. I always felt he died of a broken heart because he could never find her. Because of his sadness, I never opened this house because I felt I would be dishonoring both their memories. That is why everyone thinks I am mean and old.”
The boy sat on the couch for a very long time. “You know,” the boy finally said, “you need to be out in the sunshine. You need to let everyone see you are young and not mean.”
The young man sat and pondered for a while. “I believe you are right,” he said. I have wanted to go outside for such a long time, but I felt I would be dishonoring both my parents. But now I see I need to do something for myself.
The young boy wanted to go outside right away, but after being in the house for such a long time, the young man was hesitant. The boy took his hand, and they went to the back of the house where it was quieter and more private. The man was so excited to be outside again that he turned a cartwheel. “Wow!” he said. “That was awesome! I haven’t done that since I was a small boy.”
Every day the boy came by, and they went outside. Finally the man said, “I believe it is time for me to go to town.” He dressed in his everyday clothes and not his finer clothes. He did not want the town to feel anymore uncomfortable around him than they were already going to. He hesitated at the door, took a deep breath, and stepped out into the sunshine. Everyone gaped at him as he strolled through town. When he approached the town square, he slowed his steps and looked around. The mayor of the town stepped out of his office and slowly approached the man. “My good sire, are you lost? Are you new to our town?”
The young man answered, “No, I have lived here all my life.”;
The mayor dropped his jaw and stuttered, “But I know everyone in this town, and I don’t recall you.”
The young man answered, “I live outside of town. I have been a bit of a stranger, but I am going to remedy that.”
The mayor wondered what on earth this young man was doing here, after so many years of being a hermit. However, he invited the young man into his office. After they were seated, the mayor cleared his throat and said, “Well, young man, what do you presume to do for our town?”
“Well, first, I would like to build a new school for all the children to attend. Then, I would like to build a hospital and bring doctors into our town. I want to have good roads and a police force.
“I want to build playgrounds, and I want to be a part of this town to make up for all the years I have missed.”
The mayor stood up and shook the young man’s hand. “We are so happy to have you back in our lives. We knew and loved your parents and missed them after they were gone.”
As the years passed, the town grew, and the young man’s reputation grew also. No one ever thought of him as old and mean. The people in town were happy. The young man met a kind, beautiful, young girl. They were married in the town square, and everyone in town was invited. Everyone lived happily ever after.
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