Story of the Internet

Creation of the Internet

"So you want Grandpa to tell you a tale? Huddle close around the fire and listen to the story of the Internet and the Time of Sorrow. What do you know about the fire and its dancing flames? "

“The fire is hot,” the littlest one said.

“It makes water boil and it cooks our food,” said his older brother.

“Do we touch the fire?” Grandpa asked.

“No!” the younger children shouted, while the older ones giggled or groaned.

“Of course not.” Grandpa said. “We respect the fire and its power. A fire can burn an entire forest in an afternoon. The Great Sun is a fire too. Even though it is far, far away, the Sun warms the earth. Its light nourishes the plants and makes them grow so we have food.”

Grandpa paused looked around at his audience. Most of the children sat cross-legged on the ground. Some snuggled close to older siblings and cousins. Their eyes were large and expectant. Grandpa lit his pipe from a stick in the fire. “Now look at the sky. What do you see?”

“Stars!” a little one exclaimed.

“That’s right Zoe—millions of stars, like tiny white dots on a canopy of black. Sleeping between the stars are the giant Star Creatures—a crab, a scorpion, a ram, a bull, a lion, just to name a few.”

“Grandpa, where do the stars go in the daytime?” Manny asked.

“Oh, the stars are still in the sky during the day, but you can’t see them because the light of the Great Sun is too bright. And here is where our story begins." Grandpa lowered himself to ground and set his pipe on a small rock.

"Not so long ago—but before I was born—the Star Creatures grew very jealous of the Sun’s great light and its power over earth and its people. So they gathered together in a great meeting and plotted to capture the inhabitants of earth.

“By this time, people had already learned to harness power on Earth. They discovered electricity, radio waves, and other invisible forces. They built cables and lines across the surface of the Earth to transmit power through small objects they adored—telegraphs, televisions, telephones, and radios.

“The Star Creatures were very cunning. They decided to exploit the people’s weakness—their love of electronic power and objects. They wove a giant Net of invisible threads that crisscrossed and circled the Earth. The plan worked. Soon he people discovered the power of the Star Creatures' Net and the Time of Sorrow began.

“The people became enthralled with their new power. They named it the Internet. The people invented flying satellites to harness Internet power and transmit power to small devices they created.

“Before long, the Internet devices became household gods the people worshiped and they carried with them everywhere they went. The devices were supposed to make them wise, rich, and popular. The people forgot all about the Great Sun. They stopped gathering together and instead communicated using their gods. Children no longer went outside to play—they stayed inside their houses and became slaves to the devices.

“The Sun grew angry when it saw the Earth’s people trapped like flies in the Star Creatures’ Web. So on the day of the Winter Solstice in the year 2012, the Sun decided to break apart the Net and liberate Earth. The Sun roared a great fiery roar and exploded giant fiery flares it hurled toward earth. “The leaping flares cut off all power to the earth and on the earth. Earthquakes, fires, and floods erupted all across the groaning planet. There was no more electricity or Internet. Their apples, blackberries, ipads and all the other gods they worshiped died. Supplies of water and food became scarce. People looted and killed each other. All the wisdom of the Internet could not prevent the Time of Sorrow.

“But eventually, the Time of Sorrow came to an end. The survivors banded together. Like their ancestors, they learned to grow crops under the watchful eye of the Great and Merciful Sun. People once again respected the power of the Sun and the fragile fruitfulness of the Good Earth. "

Only red and white embers lingered in the sleepy fire. Then Grandpa stood up and all eyes followed. "You must remember this story and pass it on to your children. What we learned from the Time of Sorrow must never be forgotten,” he said, waving his wrinkled hand over us as if giving a blessing.

[Word Count: 738]