Sara Harricharan is hosting Friday Fiction today. She has links to other blogs that are posting stories today. Leave a comment to tell your appreciation.
I wrote this story, The Song of the Sunbeams, after thinking about the account of Jesus' Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem, when the Pharisees asked Him to tell the children to stop singing "Hosanna." Jesus told them that if the people were silent, then the rocks would sing praises to Him.
I wrote this story, The Song of the Sunbeams, after thinking about the account of Jesus' Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem, when the Pharisees asked Him to tell the children to stop singing "Hosanna." Jesus told them that if the people were silent, then the rocks would sing praises to Him.
Also, there are many verses in the Psalms that speak of nature praising God. I wondered if we had the abilitly, we might be able to hear that song of praise.
I hope this fills you with the same joy and wonder that I felt as I wrote it.
The Song of the Sunbeams
Mike wasn’t supposed to be
there, but Uncle Ted said, “History is happening today. Science will never be
the same. I want you to see the future.”
Men and women with briefcases
streamed into the auditorium. They set up their laptops and greeted old
friends. Chairs clanged and microphones squeaked and voices echoed on the high
ceiling. Uncle Ted stepped to the podium.
“Ladies and gentlemen . . . ”
People scurried to their
places.
“Ladies and gentlemen,
welcome to the Universal Code Project. We are honored to have many science and
technical experts here. I am excited about what today will mean for the future.
“As you can see, we will be
projecting our reports to the screen behind me. So, would you each log-in to
the Universal Code site with the password emailed to you earlier? If you wish
to speak, use one of the microphones set up on each table, please. This session
is being recorded. If everyone is ready, let us begin.”
Mike found a chair near the
back.
The screen lit up with the
UCP logo, the earth with dotted lines across it. Uncle Ted smiled. “The
Universal Code Project was established by Dr. Samuel
Warden to decipher the newly discovered pattern in all of nature. With his technology,
we have been able to digitalize the intricate design of the strange code. This
code is imprinted on delicate snowflakes, viscous lava, and even the layers of
rock at the Grand Canyon . Instead of listening
to me spouting hot air, we’d like to hear from you. Tell us what you have
discovered.”
A man near the front began.
“Good morning. My name is Maitland Richards, doctor of biology at Harvard. We
have been amazed to find the universal code in everything we have tested. It is
in the DNA of the smallest bacteria to the oldest dinosaur bones. It repeats
itself, but yet varies slightly from species to species.” A chart flashed up on
the screen. “As you can see, even colors have a code, as do the different
elements. Especially interesting is the code found in homo sapiens. We seem to have a code of our very own, different
from all others.”
Mike leaned forward in his
seat as professors and doctors each presented their data and discoveries.
“I’m Jack Reicher, a music
professor from Berkley College. We are excited to discover that with Dr.
Warden’s technology, we can digitalize sound. In the past, we have recorded
sounds in the ocean and underground, but now we have found sound in unexpected
places. There is sound in plants and rocks and even in electricity. This is
what it looks like-”
002302040502050060020030100
100300110002000500400060003
“And this is what it sounds like-”
A trill of chirps and beeps
filled the room.
Another man stood. “My name
is Vince Tacker from NASA. For decades we have heard static sounds from space.
It sounded like this-”
A loud buzzing sound filled the room.
“Now, with our new equipment,
it sounds like this – ”
The buzz changed to an arpeggio of notes like
cascading bells.
Mike jumped to his feet. He
lifted his arms as if to let the music run through his fingers like a spray
fountain. The music surrounded him. As he slowly turned around, he saw an old man
with a broom stood in the doorway.
“I know dis song! I hear it
all da time. It is da song of sunbeams when I sweep. It is da song of
raindrops. It is beautiful, yah?”
Mike smiled, but the others
in the room covered their ears and begged for it to be turned down. Uncle Ted turned
off the music and tapped his microphone. “Ladies and gentlemen, please calm
down. I want to progress to the next stage of our project. We now have a
program that converts the digital information into language. In other words, we
should be able read the patterns found in nature.”
He signaled his assistant and
the numbers on the screen changed. They became strings of letters.
RDWORTHYNAMELAMBLORDMAJESTYHOL
PHAOMEGAGLORYFOREVERHONORKINGAL
The room was silent. Whispers
drifted back and forth. Finally one man stood up. “What is this gibberish? It
doesn’t make sense at all!” Chaos erupted.
Mike could see the words.
They were squished together, but he could see them. “Worthy, Lamb, Majesty—“
The old man nudged him. “You
know da words? I only know da German. What da words say?”
Mike could hear the song in
his head. He began to sing. “Holy is the Lord. Worthy is the Lamb.”
The voices fell silent. Mike
closed his eyes and lifted his voice.
“Glory, honor, majesty to
God…”
~ ~ ~
Find this story and many others like it in
A BARREL OF PICKLES
(short stories and poems for teens)
Available for purchase from me
or from Amazon.com
Don't forget to visit Sara's Friday Fiction links.
2 comments:
Ah, I love it! Just a hint of science fiction in there, eh? A Universal language, uncoded, I can just imagine it. So glad you're joining us for Friday Fiction, Vonnie! Great story. :)
And the sad fact is, if the stones and the sunbeams did cry out in a manner we could hear, many would still deny it.
Wonderful story, Vonnie!
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