Once Upon A Time

Once upon a time, there was a man. Once upon a time, there was the same man, yet slightly different, and in a different universe. Once upon any given time, there was an infinite array of this same man, yet slightly different, in an infinite array of universes. In one universe, the man was rich, and many people adored him. In another universe, the man was poor, and people did not hate him, but tried their best not to notice him, which hurt more than hatred would have. In still another universe, the man was strange, and made himself an exoskeleton of bird bones and used chewing gum.

Yet despite these differences, they were all of them the same man. One may have been thinner than another, or one may have lost a leg during combat, or one may have grown an extra leg from absorbing his twin in the womb, yet they were all inherently the same.

Then one day, the man died. He died, once upon a time. He died once upon any given time, in an infinite array of ways. Each time he died, the remaining selves felt it, though they did not know what they felt. Once upon a given time, the man is alive; once upon a given time, he is not. Sometimes, the time between the living and dying is short; other times it is long. Yet the dying always comes, and at any given time, there are fewer of the man than there were once upon a previous time. Then there will come a time when there are none of the man, in any given time.

Likewise, there will come a time when there are none of you, in any given time. I cannot say to make the most of your time, because the “you” I am addressing may be slowly being devoured by lobsters. I do not think you would like to make the most of your time in that situation. In fact, I think you would welcome a time when you are not being devoured by lobsters, even if that time necessitates dying. Perhaps you have married the person of your dreams. You may want to make the most of your time. Unless you have terrifying dreams, then once again, dying may be preferable.

But just know this: once upon a time there was a man. Once upon a time, there is a man. Once upon a time, there will be an infinite array of the same man, yet slightly different. Once upon a time, there was, or is, or will be an infinite array of you; the same you, yet slightly different. Then once upon a time, there will not be any of you, at any given time. Make of that what you will.