If Walls Could Talk

A long sigh echoed in the empty dark room. Sitting back on a red loveseat with the shadows of night masking their body from view, a lone figure held a small object with a perpetual blinking red light grasped in their right hand. The object produced a low audible noise, the sound of static often heard on a snowy television. The noise lasted mere seconds and then it was quieted when a voice spoke aloud in the room, answering the shadowy figure’s question.

“All life perishes. Some earlier than others but all cross roads to their afterlife, whatever it may be. I cannot answer the question you seek from beyond this realm, but I can tell you what has been seen through my sight of this one. I bore witness to many births and deaths of creatures that dwell on the land I was born from. From a wee sprout, animals measuring from small to large traveled across my vicinity to receive nourishment scattered across the land and to build shelter from their remains, be it plant or other creatures. When I grew larger and sturdier, I stood tall and saw far beyond my earlier stature.

Green overran the ground varying in different shades, from the murky dark green to the warm light green effusing a radiance to match the skies. Occasionally, there were bits of land covered in sullied earth, dug up by inhabiting creatures or eroded away by weather. At land's end, turbulent crystal blue waves met the shore with an unkind gesture. The golden sun emerged everyday from the horizon and beamed down its reflection upon the body of water that hid mysteries far beyond my reach. The many creatures continued to prey on one another. Another complete mystery to me, but one I learned later meant their survival in this realm.

Then, one creature stood above all the others, declaring themselves master over land and sea. I watched these creatures organize and learn through a creation they referred to as language. To necessitate their survival they gathered into large groups to hunt and forage for their sustenance. Their skill grew with practice, easily acquiring the necessities to maintain their body’s health. With a thing they referred to as time, they had much of it, and henceforth used it more for other objectives. The arts and sciences sprung from their spare time and with it came an expansion of their domain. Their numbers grew, and when they did, my number was up. I thought my death was imminent, but the creatures enabled my body to go through a metamorphosis, shapeshifting me from one being into another.

Where once I stood tall and sturdy, my body became thin but wide, enveloping a large hollowed shape that housed small four-legged creatures with strewn yellow straws of hay. I spent my time observing these creatures, subjects to the ones who called themselves masters. There were many births and many deaths held within me. Four-legged and two-legged. With time, my duty as holder of the animals closed with the abandonment of the master creatures. Without the daily maintenance of these creatures, my body began to deteriorate, my color fading away with each day passed. The webbing from very small black creatures decorated by body, outside and inside. The paved ground beneath me began to sprout green, the thin blades blanketing my wide but thin body. I know not for how long, but eventually they came back.

With a fresh color coating, I was like new. A small family with two little ones brought more four-legged creatures, but not as many as the ones before. The family called them horses and they raised them for a sport they called racing. On hot days, I witnessed the family trudge down a dirt path to a nearby lake, splashing the sparkling water over their small sweating bodies. There were celebrations with large crowds of these walking creatures gathering to hug and shake the hand of the one being celebrated. More animals were brought, these set in a large field with a white gated boundary to keep the large creature from endangering the small ones. Snow came periodically, decorating portions of my body with long slivers of icicles. The colorful lights strung up high in honor of some unknown entity decorated the outside of my structure, bouncing off the ice and infusing it with it’s own glow when night came. Laughter and giggling reverberated across this area in warmer climates, the small ones giving chase in the spread fields, picking wild and planted flowers that grew during that time. I was happy… but then the time arrived again to be forgotten, and I stood there alone, with no walking creature to observe.

The grass grew tall around my body and the friendly black creatures I’d learned from the small ones named spiders came back to redecorate with their thin glossy webbing. Time passed. My body repeated the prior process with my color fading in the sun and wind taking its toll on my ability to keep standing. Waiting for the next creatures to come, I waited for a long time, until finally, you arrived. You did not use my body as the others did before, but housed your own body. I witnessed you live inside my hollow structure and I learned many new words from your conversations. I’ve seen the many faces that have come with you and those that have left. I know that you creatures call yourselves humans and that I was once a tree. I became an old barn, but am now a house for you to shelter the elements from. Is this correct?”

Silence fell across the room as the human sat still in their seat, the only light in the room emitting from the small object clasped tightly in the human’s lap. Moments later, the human sat forward, breaking the stillness with their jerky movements and hoarse voice.

“Remarkable...it works,” the human responded, “although I did not perceive to get an answer. To answer your question, yes, you are correct. From your account, you were consciously aware from the time you came into being, regardless of what point in time you related to me from your past. From a tree sapling to an ancient tree, and finally, to the wood that built the old barn structure recently refurbished into a modernized house.”

“Yes, and I am indebted to you for granting this gift upon me. As one who only watches, I know the purpose of the object in your hand and I am sorry that you did not get the answer you really wanted.”

The human nodded their head and stared down at the gadget morosely. Fidgeting in their seat, the human looked up with a glint of determination flashing in their eyes, “It may have not worked as I originally designed it for, but to receive a new perspective from a… an inanimate entity… gives me hope that I will see them again...”

The human’s voice waned and the room grew quiet again, the silence breaking only when the human composed themselves and continued their words, “ I mean, if something we humans declare ‘dead’ is showing signs of being aware, then there is still more to explore… Are you still there?”

“Yes, I am. I apologize. I have grown accustomed to being the silent observer. It is very strange for me to communicate.”

The human snorted and brushed their fingers over their eyes. “Yes, it is strange…” the human shifted their head around, looking all over the room at the four walls that encircled them, “I feel as if I’m talking to myself… I pray I haven’t gone off the deep end… I’m sorry if I offend you with my words… Although our kind is still developing our understanding of the world’s makeup, I truly find it hard to believe that an inanimate object has the ability to consciously be aware of itself and alert to entities separate from oneself. To objectively observe their differences is to be self aware... but we have been taught for many years that other than humans, other animals and uh… inanimate objects do not have the capacity to do as we do,” the human shook their head and released a long sigh from their mouth. “The lies we tell ourselves… Fortunately, this device will spearhead a movement to a truth we otherwise would be unable to get.”

“Yes, it is very fortunate. For too long, I have observed with no manner in communicating with all the living creatures inhabiting this planet. I am very grateful for this opportunity.”

“I am glad to be afforded the same opportunity. This device I have developed is going to produce wonders around the world, if I’m going by this conversation alone. Who knew that we could communicate with inanimate objects,” the human mumbled under their breath and a snort of laughter escaped their lips.

“I’ve witnessed and observed many occurrences in the time since my birth and I can state from my experience alone that life cannot be defined. I learned through my transformation from my perceived death that it only changes from one form to something perceptibly different. When something has life, it cannot truly die. It only moves and changes as I did. Where once I was defined with life as a ‘tree,’ I became wood used to build this old barn, defined by humans as an inanimate object, something that has no life, or is considered dead.”

“Perhaps, we will discover what constitutes life through this discovery,” the humans stated.

“Perhaps. I believe that you will come to find in your search for the truth that life is everywhere, even in things you humans perceive to be without life. To exist is to be alive, no matter the shape or form it exists in.”

The human sat still on the cushioned couch, absorbing the words issued out by the barn turned house as it echoed out through the hand-held device clutched in their hand. A smile grew on their face as they brushed their eyes with their free hand again, “this conversation has been a great consolation. I do not know what lies at the end of this road, but meeting you and having this exchange has awakened and renewed my goal in seeking those answers. I do genuinely hope that you are correct in your assessment of life.”

“I’ll be here waiting, watching, when you have found the answers.”

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