22 April 2012
As I sped down the hallway, my mind was alive with thought. Hundreds of factors, boiling down to two exits, both at the end of the eerie corridor. The corridor was lined with framed pictures, each portraying sayings of my predecessors. A large poster, lined with an elegant frame contained just a few words: 'Money can't buy happiness'.
As I continued down the hallway, past what must have been a million dreary paintings, I stumbled on a purple rug on the floor. My head clunked against the smooth mahogany, which reached up as far as I could see. As I looked up, I spotted an odd painting on the wall. Unlike the others, this painting had a weak frame, battered by the people who did not understand. The painting was of a smiling face, with the caption 'follow your heart, not the hearts of others'. I pondered on this for a moment, and then looked over my shoulder. Death was closing in on me. I had to reach the end of the hallway and get as far as I could before I was caught. I picked myself off of the ground and ran. All of this time, I thought about the decisions that I had. I could turn left at the end of the hallway, and enter a rich marble corridor, filled with golden ornaments. All that a person would need physically was there, enough food for 1000 lifetimes, and all the pastimes any person could ever want. However, the corridor was cold and desolate. Then there was the right exit: a colourful, calming corridor, filled with others, who I could greet and have fun with whilst we all frolicked down the corridor, admiring the poorly built corridor for what it was, with grins on our faces. Trying to enter in the middle was highly risky, and could result in a lot of pain.
I was running, getting closer and closer, with sweat dripping down my forehead. The decision hit me just before the wall did. As I placed one foot on the rich marble floor, I realised my mistake. Although I felt full and comfortable, I was empty inside. My decision had left me with a life of loneliness, a life of regret. I had been yet another victim to fall to the hallway of life.
The Hallway • Opuss № I