Little Everyville Chapter 1

Little Everyville
by
Gene Fredericks


The Little Village
Chapter 1

Not far from where you are right now there is a village, a little village, a village so very little most hardly ever notice it.
Nearly everything about this little village and the people who live there is small. Everything, that is, but for one thing, their feet.

Their feet are so big compared to everything else about them they are always stepping on each other’s toes. No matter where they are or where they go they step on toes. If they lean a little to the left they step on toes. If they go way off to the right they step on toes. In their attempts to be straight, they still step on toes.

Stepping on toes is so commonplace and well accepted no one thinks much about it, and those who do not step on toes are out of place and considered rude. No one wants to be rude and most are not.

So the little village people smile, nod, and think quietly to themselves in small sorts of way "You just stepped on my toe"! Yet, not a word comes out of their mouth.
However, stepping on toes causes a big problem. Whenever toes are stepped on people either lunge forward and knock those right in front of them, or pull away and knock those behind them, or merely waiver from side to side knocking the neighbors all the around them.
The little village is filled with small-minded people with big feet who step on toes, and knock heads.

This toe stepping head knocking life style creates two ongoing problems; head damage and hurt feelings. To protect their small heads from the knocks of their neighbors they wear giant balloon hats. The fancier and bigger they are the better. Wearing a big fancy balloon hat is also thought to be good for the community spirit; a sign of experience, a public display of your small-mindedness and it seems to make head aches go away or at least passes them on to others, which makes everyone feelings hurt a little less.

Balloon hat selling is a big business and at each intersection in this small like-minded community, balloon hat seller calls out “Hey get your balloon hats here, all the better to knock heads.” Most little village people walk around proudly stepping on toes knocking heads keeping their mouths shut, thinking small thoughts, and just squeaking by.

Everyone that knows the rules gets by just fine. They know no matter how many toes they step on or how many heads they knock, they must always stay on your toes and keep your mouth shut. That is a well-founded truth for all small mindedness. It is so important that it is written in all their footwear, imprinted on the sole “Stay on your toes and keep your mouth shut.” Nearly everyone is just fine with it.

However, within this little community are a few who try to stay on their toes and keep their mouths shut but stepping on toe and knocking heads does not seem to fit them. They are a bit bigger than average and their feet are a bit smaller than normal. They stand “head and shoulders” above the average little village person and are called the “above-average” people.

These above average people look rather odd, act differently, and do not see eye to eye with the others. They step on fewer toes, knock less heads, and do not need to wear the fanciest of balloon hats. Because they stand out, they seem rude and since they don’t have fancy balloon hats are considered boring, even the balloon hat sellers pay them little attention. They know folks who carefully look over things will not buy their biggest and fanciest hats, so why inflate their above average feelings and waste time try to sell them anything special.

What is worse, since above average people can look over others heads they can see a toe stepping and head knocking in the making and they avoid them. This is a most serious problem causing great concern among the average little villager since the most important principle behind stepping on toes and knocking heads is being surprised when it happens. No one is supposed to see it coming. Being aware is a problem!

The vast majority of the little people want the above average ones cut down to size. Being “head and shoulders” above should be made illegal the average ones think. Those who are head and shoulders above should be forced to fit in and step on toes like everyone else.

However, the average little person says nothing, they keep their mouths shut and continue to step on toes and silently knock their neighbors. It is better that way they think. The problem will go away. It always does.

The above-average folks soon realize no matter how big and fancy their balloon hat are they do little to protect feelings. For the above average, stepping on toes and knocking heads is a pain in the neck and a heartache.
What is worse they cannot help but notice if they don’t step on toes and knock heads their feelings hurt even more.

The bigger they get the more they sense they cannot step on toes and knock their neighbors just to fit in. They know they must find a place where they will fit in.
Being head and shoulder above the rest, they can see just outside of the little village are higher ground and perhaps, they think, a better way can be found somewhere “out there.”

Most little village people do not care if the above average folks leave. They know anyone who is “head and shoulders” above average will eventually leave their tight little community of toe stomping head knockers and move – “out there” anyway. The average ones continue to step on toes and knock heads and are quite content being small-minded people with big feet who step on toes knock heads. They learn to ignore anyone who is not like them and see no reason to change.

Fittingly, there is constant trickle of above average; misfits’ who know the little village is not the place for them. They decide to move to the higher ground and once the above-average arrive at their higher ground their feelings hurt less their vision seems clearer and they learn much more about themselves and their neighbors below them.

For most folks, this is the happy end of the road. For several, it is another beginning. Some know once they start to move they may never stop and a few never do.

That is how it is here and everywhere in Little Everyville.