Living Like Donkeys — A Letter To William Stoner, Year 1910, US

Dear William,

“Incredible things are happening in the world while we keep on living like donkeys.”

Quite a way to start a letter, isn’t it? But let’s not attribute those words to my philosophical prowess.

The credit must go to Gabriel Garcia Marquez and his book One Hundred Years of Solitude.

As you run your fingers over its worn cover and trace the yellow stains on its pages, you might wonder if I found it from an old bookstore or if it came to me as an inheritance.

No.

I acquired this paperback when its pages still shined with the innocence of unread words.

And since then, I’ve been on countless journeys through its passages, only to find myself shipwrecked on the waves of some in-between pages.

And yet, I find myself returning to its embrace time and again.

And so, dear William, here I am once again, diving headfirst into page one of this epic tale.

Imagine a place from a time when its people knew nothing about inventions like magnets and ice.

So when gypsies visit this part of the world with all those news and inventions, its inhabitants are struck with immense curiosity.

And you, as a reader, also go through the same wonder, having been taken back to a different place from a very different time, to a time when people spent money for a touch of ice.

It’s quite a reading experience to have a well-written plot that goes back to an otherwise unreachable past. Don’t you agree, William?

“Science has eliminated distance. Man will soon be able to see what is happening in any place without leaving his own house.”, Melquíades, the gypsy proclaimed.

Isn’t this letter a testament to it, William?

And having come back home from a 1000km road trip, I will now rest and finish this tale. And while doing so, I intend to write to you more often. Now it is your turn to share a story for which I will be eagerly waiting.

Best wishes,

Your friend from another century.

To,

William Stoner,

1910,

US