THE LAND OF UNLIKENESS

There was once a mirror in the middle of a large forest. It was said that the mirror would give a never-ending supply of gold to the who one knew the right words to speak to it.  One day a girl and a boy decided that they would not rest – they would not sleep in their beds – until they had figured out those words.  They sat in front of the mirror for days and nights on end and spoke every word and every combination of words they knew.  They spoke nice words and naughty words, smart words and silly words. They yelled, whispered, whistled, and threatened. But the mirror showed no signs of gold.  Soon the two became extremely tired; and yet they were determined not to sleep until they had won the object of their desire.  They were also becoming very hungry. So the girl decided to go into the village to buy some food to eat, while the boy remained in front of the mirror, with a sour expression on his face, racking his brain for a word yet untried. It was then that something very strange happened. The boy heard someone calling his name in a thin, far-away voice. He looked around everywhere, behind the rocks and trees, in the bushes and the grass, but he could not find the owner of this voice. Then, something in the mirror caught his attention, and, gasping, he noticed a lizard down in one corner, looking him right in the face.  The lizard spoke to the boy: “Is it true that you search for the treasure of the mirror, the treasure which no one has ever won?” The boy could scarcely believe he was being addressed by this strange little beast, but he slowly nodded his head in affirmation. “Well,” said the lizard, “I know the words you need.” At this the boy’s heart quickened. He glanced over his shoulder and said in a quiet voice: “I’ll give you whatever you ask.” The lizard gave a funny little smile and replied, “I do desire something in return, but first let me tell you how I came to be imprisoned in this mirror.”

One day, when I was very hungry, I wandered much further from my home than I ever had before. I came upon a beautiful pond in the middle of which was a water lily with a large and delicious looking fly on it. I was so mesmerized by this potential meal that I walked right to it without ever noticing that I was walking on top of the water! I had almost got to the lily when I realized what was going on. Quite surprised, I looked down into the water and saw a whole beautiful world beneath its surface – all sorts of magnificent creatures doing all sorts of amazing things. I wanted nothing more than to go live with them forever . . . . .but I had forgotten about the fly! When I looked, though, it was gone, and I immediately sank down into the world below me. To my dismay, none of those amazing things which I had seen were actually there. They had only been mirages, reflections of the trees, and rocks, and other things which surround this mirror. I have been here for many years now.  Instead of fantastic creatures all I ever see is what happens to wander in front of the mirror – mostly people searching for gold. Gold! Gold! Gold! That’s all they ever talk about. And since I was trapped here, forced to listen to them, I, too, began to think of nothing but gold, and I began to desire it just as much as everyone else. All these people seemed to think that the mirror could provide this gold, but I was in the mirror and I knew just as little about it as they did. Then I saw you and the girl. I had never seen two people come together. You wished for gold, like everyone else, but you also spoke of the things you would do with that gold, the buildings you would raise, the places you would travel, and the people you would help. I suddenly realized the secret: the land of the mirror in which I live is the source of gold, but only if something – or someone, I should say – is given from your side.

The boy appeared confused and slightly troubled. “What do you mean?” The lizard looked him in the eye and said slowly, “I can give you boundless gold, but you must give this girl whom you love to the land of the mirror. As soon as she is with me this mirror will be for you a source of never-ending riches, and you will be able to fulfill all your dreams.” The boy fell silent, and his face became very serious. He and the girl loved each other very much. How could he be happy without her? But all the things they wanted to do, did they not all cost money? Where would they get it from? Would not the girl want him to carry out these plans, even if it meant that they could not be together? For weren’t the things which they desired very good things? They wanted to help children, and the poor, and to make the world a happier, and more peaceful, place. Had they not sat in front of this mirror for days, trying every word, phrase, song and poem that they knew? Had they not exhausted every language, ancient and modern, that had ever been written down in a book? Had they not whispered to each other during sleepless nights in front of the mirror that they would do anything to achieve their dreams? They had not thought it would come to this, but. . . . . “What must I do,” said the boy, “to give her to you?” She must speak these words directly to the mirror,” said the lizard: “I am the mirror’s and the mirror is mine.” Then the boy leaned down and the lizard whispered his diabolical instructions in his ear. When the girl returned with the food she had purchased, the boy approached her with a sunny smile and a cheerful voice: “Lets play a game!” he said. The girl smiled back at him, and such a smile meant that she would love nothing else but to play that game.  The boy showed her some words that he had written on a piece of paper and said, “While you were gone I invented a special language. If you can figure out what it says, I’ll give you a surprise.” The girl studied the piece of paper, which looked like this:

                        {I am the mirror’s and the mirror is mine (in mirror writing)}

“That’s very strange,” she said. “It looks like words, but I can’t make out how it’s pronounced.” She sat down and tried to sound the letters out, but she came up with only gibberish. Then suddenly she jumped up and put the piece of paper up to the mirror. The letters made sense now, and she triumphantly shouted out the fateful message: “I am the mirror’s and the mirror is mine.” She did not see the look of desperate sadness on the face of the boy as she was drawn into the mirror, never to be seen again. The boy ran up to the mirror and looked for her, but he could not see her. And instead of the trees and bushes, grass and rocks, which should have been reflected there, he saw only an extremely large pile of golden coins, and the lizard sitting on top, with a crown on its head, looking like a king. With its tail it flipped a coin through the mirror and into the boy’s open hand. “Whenever you need some money,” said the lizard, “just come to me. I’ll never say no to you. And the best thing about it is, whenever I give some gold to you, my treasure increases as well.” The lizard smiled broadly and started to roam over the pile of wealth, touching each coin with its long toes. The boy said nothing, but stared, half unbelieving at the spectacle in the mirror, then at the coin in his hand – so heavy, so pure, so bright. He knew that he would be able to buy whatever he wanted with coins like these, that he would be able to do all the things which he had dreamed about with the girl. Indeed, the boy grew up and did them all. He built schools and libraries. He fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and visited those who languished in prisons. He helped many people over his long life, but he did it all alone. Every time he came to the mirror to get more gold, the thought of what he had done to his beloved friend tore at his heart, and made him very sad indeed.

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