Mount Solation
Andrew G. Alt
©Mental Dimensions
May 2005
Mount Solation is also listed in the Cynic Online Magazine.
Once upon a time there was a mountain -- several, in fact. Upon one particular mountain stood a man and he was alone. He was not completely alone; the clouds swarming above were his companions. One day, The Man decided to give them all names. After 100,000 years, giving names to all the clouds became tiresome for The Man, so he changed his mind. After 10,000 years of not naming clouds, he thought to name the raindrops which the clouds produced. After 50,000 years, naming raindrops grew tiresome so he ceased giving names to the raindrops. The Man, of course, became very bored. After 5,000 years had passed, he had the idea to give names to the grains of sand and dirt he saw on the mountain. After 25,000 years, this began to tire The Man. He decided to quit naming all the grains of sand and dirt.
After 10,000 years of not giving names to anything, he again fell victim to boredom. The Man decided to name the mountain upon which he was standing. He thought about what name to call the mountain for 20,000 years. The Man finally decided to call it "Mount Solation." He was very satisfied with the name and decided to go to sleep. He was extremely tired, and slept for 5000 years.
When The Man awoke, there was a woman standing next to him. The Man was surprised and rubbed his eyes. He had never seen a woman before. The Man had only heard about women from the clouds -- the clouds used to whisper to him stories of life, men, and women. The woman spoke,
"What's your name?"
The Man looked disappointed. "I forgot to give myself a name. I am The Man."
"There are many men," she laughed and smiled pleasantly. "Everyone has a name. You must have one too."
The Man replied, "You say everyone has a name, then I agree that I must have one too. Unfortunately, if I ever had a name, I have forgotten it. What is your name?"
"Theresa," the woman replied.
"May I have it?"
"Have what?" Theresa inquired.
"Your name," The Man answered.
Theresa laughed and smiled pleasantly. "But if I give you my name, then I won't have one."
"I understand. Perhaps I will give myself a name. I have named many clouds, raindrops, grains of sand and dirt, and also this mountain. Giving a name to myself should be very simple."
"One should hope so," Theresa laughed and smiled pleasantly.
The Man sat down on a rock and began to think of a name for himself. After 20,000 years, he decided on a good name. He looked around to tell Theresa his new name, but couldn't find her anywhere. The Man was disappointed that although he now had a name, he had nobody to ask him what his name was -- nor anyone to call him by his given name. For 250,000 years he wondered how to solve his dilemma; he occasionally slept between thoughts. The Man talked to the clouds often and asked their advice. Unfortunately, after 200,000 of those years had passed, the sky cleared and became blue with no clouds to keep him company. The Man had been completely alone for 50,000 years.
At the end of that time, a solution entered into the mind of The Man. "Today I will go down to the bottom of Mount Solation and I will look for Theresa. I would like to tell her my new name." The Man began walking down his mountain, but noticed the clouds had returned. The Man thought to return to the top of Mount Solation, but after a second of thought, decided to continue downward.
The Man never realized quite how high Mount Solation stretched into the sky. The Man thought for a second to turn and go back to the top, but decided against it. Two days after that thought, The Man saw someone in the distance. He was quite surprised to see anyone, for he was only half-way to the bottom.
As he drew nearer, he recognized Theresa. "Theresa!" He yelled out to her. Theresa then recognized him also, and responded back, "Hello, Man!"
They approached each other, and The Man said, "I've come to tell you my new name."
"That's wonderful! I'm glad you have a new name; I've been waiting for you to decide on one. Many times I've gone to the top of your mountain, but found you sleeping. I would have come more often, and perhaps found you awake, but it's a very long walk up and down your mountain. Please tell me now, what's your name?"
"I have spent much time deciding on my new name. I could not tell you exactly how much though. Sometimes in the past, I have lost track of time. At one point, I thought to give names to the seconds which pass by me, but I was busy naming raindrops when that thought entered my mind. I had not the opportunity to name the seconds."
Theresa said, "That's all right. I don't want to know how much time or how many thoughts you've spent choosing the name you've given yourself. I would just like to hear your name."
"Ricky," The Man replied.
"I like that name. You've given yourself a fine name, Ricky."
"Thank you, Theresa. I came to find you so I could tell you my new name. Now that I have told you, I will go back up to the top of Mount Solation."
"Ricky, instead of going back to the top of your mountain, would you like to walk down to the bottom with me?"
"What is at the bottom of Mount Solation?"
"The same things that are at the top -- clouds, raindrops, and grains of sand and dirt. Also, I live at the bottom, and so do other men and women. There are many other things at the bottom of your mountain which aren't at the top."
"It sounds very much as what the clouds used to whisper to me. They used to tell me about life, men, and women."
Theresa said, "The clouds would know about all of those things. They've seen it all. It was a cloud who whispered to me, and that's how I found you when we first met; before you had given yourself a name."
Ricky and Theresa began walking down Mount Solation toward the bottom. Ricky asked, "Did the cloud tell you its name?"
"Yes. After the cloud told me where to find you, and that you were on the top of your mountain naming all the clouds, the cloud told me that its name was 'Theresa.'"
"That is very interesting. I remember naming that cloud. It was the first cloud that ever whispered stories to me about life, men, and women. I named the cloud 'Theresa,' and then the cloud whispered to me that it knew another 'Theresa' and would tell her about me. Until now, I had forgotten about that whisper. I can't remember when the whisper became lost from my mind, but I think it might have been while I was naming raindrops. I would like to find that cloud named 'Theresa' and thank it for keeping its promise."
"Theresa answered, "You won't find that cloud. It became some of the raindrops that you named. It now floats through a river which passes along the bottom of your mountain. It often carries with it many of the grains of sand and dirt which you've named."
"It saddens me about that cloud being gone," Ricky sadly stated.
"That cloud isn't gone; it still exists as the river, the riverbed, and is part of many other clouds that you now see. Many years ago I went looking for you, and I found you sleeping. I went back down the mountain and by the time I reached the bottom, I had almost died of thirst. The river gave me some of it's water and I continued to live."
Ricky and Theresa spent much of the time talking on their walk down to the bottom of Mount Solation. When they finally arrived at the bottom, they both were very thirsty and drank from the river. They saw and spoke with each other frequently for many years to follow -- and also to the other men and women at the bottom of Mount Solation. Ever after, Ricky lived -- and experienced that which the clouds had whispered about to him, once upon a time.