It was nightfall, and I was tired. I laid myself down on my bed, to fall asleep. But suddenly, light came over me, and I was not sleeping. I looked around, and I could see that I was on a beach, a long beach, which seemed to go on forever. I asked myself, "what is this?". And as I said this, I started to walk. And as I started to walk, the most peculiar thing started to happen. I was getting smaller, and smaller and smaller, with each step.
"What is happening? What is the purpose of all this?" I said. So I stood still, in hopes to no longer shrink. But it happened, all the same. I got so small that I could no longer see the water over the sand, and smaller still I got. I closed my eyes in terror, I didn't want to see it. But I could feel it, feel all my self getting smaller still. I opened my eyes. I was smaller then the sand itself, they appeared to be huge boulders at this size. "No!" I yelled. "Where's my kingdom, where's my castle, where is my bed??". But nothing changed. I still got smaller. And then the most curious thing happened. As I looked down at the sand speck I was standing on, it seemed to engulf me. I was going inside the speck of sand, and I did not see what I expected.
As the speck engulfed me, the sand speck became the world which I saw. I was inside the speck of sand, and I knew that. But it seemed so much larger than that on the inside, it was a world like ours. There were villages and cities, and people. And I was shrunk down to the size of a person in that world, and was put in one of the villages.
"Excuse me" I asked the nearest person (or sand.. person) nearest me. "What is exactly is this place?"
"This is Hyerstown, sir. Why, were you looking for something?"
"Hyerstown? I would like to get back to England, if you please."
"England? I've never heard of such a place, however, if you go ask of the king, he will be able to lead you where you want to go."
"The King? I am the king!"
"Of what kingdom?"
"My Kingdom. I'm the king of England!"
"Ah, the place you can't get back to. Well, it seems awful unfortunate that you are the king of the place you can't find, but if you are so, go find the King."
"Yes, well, where is the King?"
"He is just straight down this road. Huge Castle. Can't miss it."
"Yes thank you."
I knew I was in a speck of sand. That knowledge had not left me, though hard it was to realize. For the world I was in looked so real, just like ours. I thought "What an unfortunate king he is, he's only the king of sand! A king of effectively, nothing!"
And I walked towards the castle, I felt very proud. For here I was, the king of England, The King of the british empire, the king of the world. And here he was, the king that resides in the castle, the King of nothing. I knew this. He may not, but I did. I went forward with pride.
I got the castle. I entered without hesitation, despite it's enormous size. I followed the signs to the King. And I went right up to his throne with my question.
"Excuse me, but how do I get our of here?" I asked
"I am 'Your Highness' to you, villager, and pray, out of where?"
"Out of this village, out of this speck of sand."
"To get out of this village, you must walk out. Question finished, next?"
"NO! I want to get out of this world, I want to go back to England!"
"England? Such a place does not exist. And you cannot get out of the world, it is the world. There is nothing more to see, fool."
"You don't understand. I am the king. The King of everything. You are just a king of a little speck of sand on one of MY beaches. And I am ordering you to get me out of here!"
"No, perhaps you don't understand. I am the king of everything, and you are just a villager in MY Kingdom. And I am ordering you to leave!"
As he said this guards came and pulled me out. I didn't understand, did he not know he was a king of nothing? Did he not know that he was worthless, to all but this people who did not really exist? I laughed. What a fool he was. I was the king of everything, of the whole world. The real world. He's just the king of sand.
And as I said this, I found myself on my pillow. "My Bed!" I screamed. I was back in my castle, back in my bedroom, in MY world! I was so happy. And I went out in on the balcony to soak in my world. The world that I own, the world that I am the one and only king of. "That, that's Mine. And that's MINE. And that, and that, and everything!" I yelled out to the world.
But then I looked up at the sky and said "I own you to!". I smiled, I owned everything. But.. I saw the stars. And I thought "Do I own them to?". And then I thought, "Of course I do!". But then I realized.
I looked up at the stars, and I looked up at heaven. I thought, what am I, to heaven? Am I not just the king of a speck of sand? I am that king. The king of the speck. The king of nothing.
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