Zbornik Mednarodnega literarnega srečanja Vilenica 2004 - Ljudmila

Vladamir P. Štefanec
The Unicorn
From the book Paris Stories
Empty hope is a neglected, treacherous and persistent animal. It resides
in an exposed corner in the obscure depths of a stony pass or perhaps in
an underground cave. It feeds on its favorite prey, nothing more consequential
than the sweet promises of susceptible mortals. It has no benefit
to anyone at all and makes trouble wherever it goes. It would be best to
exterminate this beast and be rid of the nuisance forever. But since it is so
cunning and evasive, that is easier said than done.
The insidious creature is so skilled at drawing seductive images of the
unattainable that it seems to us that we need only reach out our hand and
the alluring apparition will be ours. But when we do this, we grasp a mere
handful of air and we realize that our arm is far too short, and worse that
it will never be long enough to seize the desired thing. This eternal
tempter, this skilled poisoner, fawns on the mercantile soul by flickering
brightly through the fog, pretending to be the intimate friend of fantasists
and dreamers, the clever challenger of temperance. Some of us stagger,
powerless and blind, from one fanciful illusion to the next, ever more
exhausted and beaten, but perpetually addicted. Others are tempted only
occasionally, during moments of weakness when the watchdogs of reason,
weary from constant vigilance, doze off for a moment in a shady
corner. Nobody is entirely immune since the inventive swindler has countless
tricks up his sleeve and uses a great number of different decoys in his
ceaseless hunt for more victims on his ruinous march.
The consequences of his actions are always unpleasant, sometimes
more so, sometimes less. Sometimes they can be horrifically destructive
and even tragic. But of course, there are also occasions when the consequences
are relatively humorous, causing its unfortunate victim nothing
more harmful than confusion or being caught in an awkward situation.
But, in all cases, there are consequences. In the best scenario, they are of
a transitory nature, but more often than not, they are quite stubborn and
sometimes a poor soul must live with them until the end of his days.
I must admit that, dreamy as I am, the swindler has tricked me on numerous
occasions. A few days before I traveled to Paris, I once again swallowed
the bait that was this time cleverly hidden in a small newspaper
notice. Under the title Restored Paris Museum of Natural History, the following
words were written:
After 29 years, the zoological exhibition at the Paris Museum
of Natural History will be reopened to the public. The great
hall of the museum is comprised of an iron structure with
ceiling windows. It was built in 1889, at the same time as the
Eiffel Tower. The building, which was the work of the architect
Paul Chemet and Borja Huidobro, will soon be returned
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