One Small Step For Man, by Ram Goli

8/12/2019 One Small Step For Man, by Ram Goli

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Ram Goli

Ms. Gardner

English 10H 2*

5 September 2013

One Small Step For Man

The faint sounds of grungy and obnoxious Christmas holiday music trickled through the

walls of my little ramshackle home; I was surprised the music could make it this far. I had built

this cozy little two-room shack out in the middle of the country, surrounded by stretches of green

grass for a reason.

Turn down the music, you ignorant fools! I yelled, Theres nothing to celebrate!

Nothing! I screamed as loud as I could, reassured that no one would be able to hear me. The

only creatures that could possibly hear me were the cows that occasionally strolled through my

yard, but at least they wouldnt bother me. I lazily strolled over to the trashed and cracked radio

resting on my kitchen counter and proceeded to fiddle with the knobs, trying to pick up on some

station. After five minutes of solid static, I angrily picked up the radio and threw it across the

room. It traveled about fifteen feet across the compact room, and hit my aged rotary telephone

hanging on the opposite wall. Both the telephone and radio hit the brittle wood floor, and a thick

cloud of dust billowed up. I walked over to the mess on the ground and stood there, observing

the spider webs that coated the phone.

Sighing, I sat down in my shabby sofa and stared longingly at my deep-rooted collection

resting on the coffee table in front of me. It was an accumulation of the various photographs,

gadgets and books that I had collected over the years about the mysteries of outer space. Now

that I was almost seventy, the collection had grown astronomically large. It helped me take my


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mind off of things down here on Earth. I despised life here on Earth. Life down here is a swirling

pool of entropy, whereas in space, everything is organized, in unison, and serene. I had long

since had an obsession with the outer reaches ever since I was a little boy and received my first

present from my parents. I constantly played with it, using it to expand my curiosity and peer

deep into space. It was my passion, and the foundation for my collection. That is, until I lost it a

few months ago. And when I did, the hole in my spirit further caved away. I became even more

bitter and unpleasant, moping around in silence. I was stuck here on Earth.

All of a sudden, I was interrupted by subtle knock on the door and a young childs voice,

Hey Mr. Scrooge! You in there? I was startled. Was somebody at the door?

Umm, coming, I called back. I got up to answer the door, but found it to be locked

shut. The door seemed to be rusted shut against the frame. I yelled out, Stand back! and kicked

at it as hard as I could. My frail old legs hardly could provide any power, but after a few

attempts, the door dislodged from the frame and fell to the ground outside. Standing off to the

side was a young boy, maybe 15 or 16 years of age. He looked familiar, like a family relative I

had never quite gotten to know.

May I come in Mr. Goli? he politely asked. I was very much confused with the

situation at hand and I wasnt a social person by any means, but he had a warming smile on his

face that I found to be eerily irresistible.

I suppose. Whats your name kid? I responded, stepping away from the door to let him

enter. He walked right in without answering my question.

I felt very uncomfortable as this strange child laid down his backpack, sat in my only

sofa, and curiously stared at my astronomy collection, as I hadnt been in the company of another

human in months. I wanted him to leave right away.


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The boy turned away from the coffee table to face me and asked, Mr. Goli, how have

you been?

Fine. I answered, Do you need anything? You really should be on your way.

No thanks. I came here to talk to you, Mr. Goli. Youve seemed troubled recently, he

said.

Confused, I asked, What are you talking about? Im perfectly fine.

Oh contraire, Mr. Goli, he said. Look at you. Its Christmas Eve and youre cooped up

in this cave all by yourself. Why dont you head on down into town and spread the holiday

spirit?

That sounds horrible. I chuckled, Why on Earth would I want to do that?

The boy stood up and strode over to the blinds on the only window, blew off a thick layer

of dust that had settled on them and pulled them open. Bright white light shined in and

illuminated all four corners of the room, exposing details I hadnt cared to notice before. Take a

look outside. Theres an entire world out there, teeming with nature and enjoyment and

possibility. Your family and old friends are out there, and you choose to remain in this little hut!

Dont you want to see what its like, to breathe the fresh air and smell the green grass growing

just outside this place?

Amusing. Out there, I pointed towards the little town off in the distance, is not for me.

All thats out there is crushed goals and drowned hope. In here, I can do whatever I want, and

NOBODY can stop me. So I appreciate the advice little guy, but your efforts are in vain. Im

much happier in here.

The boy went from looking fifteen to looking five. His cheery grin fell, and it appeared as

if the candle that lit up his face had been blown out. Well, it was nice talking with you Mr.


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Goli, he stated bitterly, I hope you enjoy yourself in here. As he got up to leave, a small black

object fell out of his backpack. I bent to pick up and looked up to call his attention, but he was

nowhere to be found.

Thats odd, I thought to myself. Did he disappear? Disregarding the notion, I examined

the wooden object in my hand and was baffled. There it was in my hands, my childhood pastime,

my link to the outer universe, the treasure that I had lost oh so long ago: my pocket telescope.

Hands trembling, I carefully brought it up to my eye and peered through the all-too-familiar

eyepiece. I saw not the blue sky, but old memories of myself as a child and young man, staying

up late at night to peer through this magical apparatus and gaze at distant stars and planets. I was

ecstatic. Amid all the memories and emotions that were running through my mind, there was still

an unanswered question lingering about. Who was that boy?

Without even thinking, I walked into the adjoining room and kneeled down to bring out

the old shoebox lying under my bed. I wiped away the fine layer of dust on the lid and uncovered

the title that had been etched on, For Old Times Sake.

I lifted out the lone content of the box, an old photo album, and began to flip through its

pages. I turned to the section from high school and was blown away. There was that mystery

boy, in pictures taken with my parents, old friends, and teachers, beaming with a great big grin.

Smiling, I pulled out the picture I was most fond of. The picture was taken at the county science

fair, where I was on stage receiving a prize that still rested on my bedside stand. Holding it in my

hand, I stood up and sat on my bed to get a better look at it. There again was that boy, smiling

just as he was a few minutes ago, enjoying the company of everyone around him, dressed in a

suit and tie, living in the moment, receiving my award for Best Project. There I was.

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One Small Step For Man, by Ram Goli