tales of Suchita

“Baba what is this?” asked Leena as she peered into the glass case. What she saw made her gasp in delight and an inexplicable itch began in her hand, one of wanting to possess the relic.

Leena’s father hushed his voice and said, “That Leena is what our ancestors used to call a book. People used to read it to gain knowledge.”

She looked back at the relic – book. Astounded, she asked, “You mean they didn’t have this?” She touched the hole in the back of her head. It was a cerebral pin that every child was manufactured with. Anything they needed to know, they could simply buy a pin and download the program. The time it took to download the program was the time it took for them to learn anything.

“No daughter they didn’t have these. They used to learn the old-fashioned way – putting in time, effort and resources.” His voice was wistful. “Legend says many wars were fought over this relic.”

Laughing, Leena looked back at the book that had mesmerizing pictures but she realized she couldn’t read. That was a program she hadn’t needed and hence hadn’t downloaded. “Unbelievable; you’re teasing me Baba!”

Her father shook his head as he looked at the book. His junky reading program got activated and he was able to make out a word here or there.

“Would you like to know why the wars were fought?” Excited, Leena nodded and put her hand in her father’s as he led her to a pins shop.

And the relic just sat there, reduced to a guest in her own home for what Leena and her father didn’t know, couldn’t know, was that they were in an old library, filled with so called relics and wisdom that had gone out of fashion in the name of utility and convenience.

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This is 18 of 26 Myths and Legends. To know more, click here.