Year 2036. With the candlelight placed next to my journal, I write about a place. A place so far away. Far away.
Darkness. I cannot see anything but darkness with my bare eyes. My arms, my hands, cannot seem to clutch on to anything. I've seemed to have been free-falling endlessly into a vortex, a trap with no way out. A gravitational force seems to be pulling me to a different dimension, a different world. After what seems to feel as if ages have passed, an intangible force suddenly throws me into an unfamiliar atmosphere. Thump! I slide onto ice, hard land. Wait, it is just pure land painted completely white. I slowly stand, turn my head in all directions, and glance at my strange surrounding. Panic suddenly strikes me. I shut my eyes tightly, near paralyzed at what I have just seen. So surreal. I slowly lift my eyelids, once again. Complete pale, white. The sky. No there is no sky. No trees. No signs of life, except for my solitary self. The land is covered with the color white. Completely blank. I do not know if I am even walking on land. Where am I? Am I in heaven? A bright, piercing light from a distance shines from a distance. I held my arm up against my forehead to shun the bright light from stabbing my eyes. A voice seems to be calling me. "Come this way, I will lead you."
Should I believe it or run away? I need to find a way back home. This place though not confined is yet another gigantic replica of a trap that emanates claustrophobic vibes. No, it may not be so. It is just my imagination. Breathe. Breathe. As I slowly advance towards the light, I begin to sense a force is pushing me forward. When I try to back up with hesitance, I realize that the spatial surrounding behind me has solidified into clear ice. Panic suddenly strikes me that I must quickly compose myself and hasten my pace to escape. I run towards the light. But no matter how hard I try, it seems like I just could not get any closer. Running out of breath and gradually losing the energy to push myself any further, I slip and fall and fall unconscious for a fleeting moment. I slowly find the energy to unpeel my eyelids and the courage to stand back up. I lift myself up with the palms of my hand against the ground, but as I look up, I see a motherly figure stand before me lending her hand to me. I reach up to grab onto her hand. Who is she? As soon as I stand up, the figure that was only inches away from me suddenly disappears into a shadow. "Wait!" I yelp. I try to grab onto the remnants of the shadow, but it is too late.
When I finally reach the light, I find myself warping into a shangri-la. What is this place? It seems so far away. Very far away. A place beyond my imagination. Everything in front me is unbelievable. A sudden gust of wind blows against my fast as I find my balance on the vast grassland. This is no ordinary grassland or is it a prairie? As I breathe in the crisp, clean air, I sense nostalgia. Where am I? I questioned myself. Am I still in the present........past.........or...or.. the future? I could not tell which dimension I am in at all. This place just seems so strange yet so familiar.
I keep wandering. For miles and miles. Suddenly, the motherly figure reappears and walks towards me. She wears wrinkles on her face and is dressed in a simple beige robe. Her hair was tied into a braid with strands of white, smooth hair.
"Who are you?" I asked.
"I am your Guidance," she responds with a soothing voice.
"What is this place? Why am I here?" I say worriedly.
"You are lost, my child. Let me guide you," she reassures me.
"But... but," I hesitate, " I do not even know you, stranger. Where are you from?"
"Call me Guidance. I am from this place. This place you have found. I am assigned to guide you. Do you mind walking with me as I show you to your destination."
She then glances at me with her deep, profound eyes. "Don't worry, you will be fine."
As we walk, a musical sound begins to play in the surrounding grassland. The sound seems to be produced by a wind instrument.
"What is this sound....or music?" I ask the old lady.
"It is the folktale in this community. Let me sing to you to calm your heart."
And she begins.
There is a place. A place that is very very far away.
There is also wind there. There is also a very old piece of grassland.
The proud mother's eyes are so deep and profound.
Her voice so tender and mild.
Ulan Bator's Night...is so quiet, so beautiful.
Warm songs resound gently, rustling winds gently blow.
Ulan Bator's Night...is so quiet, so beautiful.
The singer should not shed tears.
There is a place. A place that is very very far away.
That place has a deep yearn for people so dear to you.
People of this grassland are carefree.
They would like to drink and with glee.
Ulan Bator's Night...is so quiet, so beautiful.
You are so far from me, but seems so near.
Ulan Bator's Night...is so quiet, so beautiful.
Listeners of this song are not allowed to shed tears.
The sound level of the music gradually fades away. I turn and then ask the old lady, "Guidance, what is this song about and why did you sing it to me?"
(TO BE CONTINUED...)
