A Stardust

A stardust, no more than ten years old, sat on a narrow beam between a river that flowed into a lagoon. At the bottom of the lagoon, the last of the world's coral reefs lay. Some say they're the oldest thing on this planet, older than the mountains and the oceans. Coral reefs are also the first to be affected by the warming of the planet. <br><br>The stardust sat on the beam, unable to make eye contact. Its gaze drifted on the river that flowed into the lagoon. Then it would look ahead to the lagoon. Its gaze seemed to dance between the two, never focusing on one for more than a few seconds.<br><br>Suddenly a ripple appeared in the lagoon. Slowly, the ripple formed into a figure. The stardust kept its eyes on the figure, watching as a woman with long flowing hair took shape. As the woman approached, it turned its gaze to the river flowing into the lagoon. <br><br>The woman swam to the beam. "Hello," she said.<br><br>The stardust didn't reply. <br><br>"You're new here, aren't you?" she asked.<br><br>The stardust still didn't reply.<br><br>"You know," the woman said. "I'm the oldest thing on this planet. I've seen everything. The days when the rain fell harder, the mountains were taller, the oceans were wider."<br><br>The stardust didn't reply.<br><br>The woman looked at the beam. "This beam wasn't always here. A long, long time ago, when the world was still new, my people built a temple in the middle of the lagoon. The beam was the bridge between the temple and the land. The temple was built by a man who wanted to prevent the death of the world. He believed by building the temple in the lagoon, he could preserve the natural state of the world. He paired the beam with a potted orchid, and whenever the potted orchid died, he would replace it. He did this for a long time, but he died. The temple remained, the potted orchid remained, and the beam remained. Years turned into decades. Decades turned into centuries. The temple crumbled and destroyed. The beam remained. Years turned into decades. Decades turned into centuries. The beam crumbled. Then it was gone. Years turned into decades. Decades turned into centuries. The world became sicker, but the people didn't know. They thought they were. They built a new beam, exactly like the one built by the man who wanted to save the world. They planted a new orchid, exactly like the one built by the man who wanted to save the world. They built a center on the land. They called it a center, not a temple. On the wall of the center, they had a painting of the temple. The man who built the temple was in the painting. The potted orchid was in the painting. The beam was in the painting. In the painting, he stood behind the woman. She was painting the sky in that painting. She painted the blue of the sky in the painting. For a long time, she watched the beam from the lagoon. Years turned into decades. Decades turned into centuries. Once more, the beam crumbled and was gone. They tried to build it again, but they couldn't. Once more, the orchid died, but they couldn't revive it. They couldn't paint the sky blue anymore."<br><br>The stardust opened its mouth. "I'm a stardust," it said. "I've come from the universe. One day, the universe will be gone. All the planets and stars are dying. They will soon crumble and be gone. We need to—"<br><br>The woman interrupted. "You know how old I am. I've seen everything. You're not the first stardust to try and save the world."<br><br>The stardust closed its mouth. Its eyes looked at the river. They looked ahead at the lagoon. They looked at the river. They looked at the lagoon. All of a sudden they stopped moving. <br><br>"I'm leaving," the stardust said.<br><br>"I know," the woman said. "I've seen it before."<br><br>The stardust stood up. It took a step forward, and just like the woman, it crumbled and disintegrated into dust that disappeared in the wind.