T h e P r i m a l R i g h t

Jimmy is drunk. He is been to the annual bacchanalia that happens in the local forest, in the name of remembering a certain sum of soldiers who died there during the war. A couple of bands perform guitar music to a crowd of jolly juveniles, who come there with the sole intent of having a good time. Apart from setting the crowd in spirit, this music disturbs the annual mating season of the marmots which live in those woods. Well, a couple of marmots going without sex does not weigh too much of a sacrifice as against those soldiers who died fighting the Nazis. Does it ? And ofcourse, there shall be no shortage within the crowd to pick up on that job of having sex, which the marmots have left unfinished.

Jimmy is drunk. He is already begining to see inanimate things do swing-dancing. Everything seems to have been jazzed up. The general size of the women's breasts seems to have gotten much bigger. He can hear his friends shouting his name, as they continue to deeper glories of alcoholism. Jimmy decides to take a stroll. He needs to ponder about the general outlook of his life in the safe precincts of numbed down mental powers, which otherwise would scare him off the above pursuit.

He finds a cosy tree away from din of the crowd, sets himself down, and commences the process of ruminating. He looks at his life, his job, his prospects in the near future, his personal life - everything seems glossy and gleaming. With a huge smile pasted on his face, he falls asleep.

In the middle of his slumber, he gets woken up by a loud conversation.

"So, you think he will get past his next birthday ?"

"Well, it is unlikely, but there is always a sliver of chance. You see, this chap Jimmy is born an idiot. He may not realize that he always has the right."

"Yes ofcourse. The primal right. But, two more years, that's what I will give him."

"Not even that, what does his life offer him ? An unending slew of disappointment, rejection, confusion. More disappointment. It is surprising how he still has not gotten to see the truth."

"Yes, the truth, that the whole world is just a pretence. That it is just an elaborate theater set up so that we can look at his misfortunes, laugh at them, and get our share of fun."

Jimmy is alarmed. He opens his eyes and sees two shadowy figures clad in black cloaks, standing next to the tree. It is their voices that have woken him up. He cannot see his friends or the rest of the partying crowd. He must have walked quite deep into the woods.

Suddenly, one of the cloaked figures turns towards him.

"Can't you see Jimmy ? Your life is just for us, a piece of entertainment. Nothing in this world actually exists. You are just being fooled by us, and how well you are being fooled."

Jimmy lowers his eyelids in terror, lest the two figures see that he is awake.

"Haven't you seen the game Jimmy - where they use bloodthirsty hounds to chase the rabbits. The silly rabbit runs maniacally, never wondering why it is getting chased, may be it is for somebody's pleasure. It never knows. Hasn't it ever occured to you Jimmy, that you are probably participating in a similar game yourself ?"

"Ahh. Let's leave it at that. This chap Jimmy is dumb to his bone. He will not realize, for example, that he will never find a girl that truly loves him."

"That is part of the script. Isn't it ?", chuckles the other figure.

"Yes. He is like a stale vegetable in a vegetable market. The one that always gets picked up by the customers, only to be tossed down with a deep scorn. The kind of vegetable that finally ends up in the trash."

"And he will never get true appreciation for anything."

"Poor Jimmy, he will never learn how to dance, he keeps trying, only to produce jeering laughs from everyone around."

"He will never play any sport properly. His friends keep him only because they are short of a person. They hate him and make jokes about him behind his back. ".

"He doesn't realize that his life is a big joke by itself."

"If only he can realize that he can end it all. That he can pull the plug."

"That is his primal right, isn't it ? The right that comes automatically for every creature. He doesn't realize it."

"No, but we have also kept too many hurdles behind that. He has to think about his family. He has to think about what hopes they have kept in him, only to be constantly depressed about how he is letting them down."

"Yes, he cannot pull the plug, but he so wants to. Oh Jimmy, but this is your primal right". The figure bends over Jimmy. It keeps its hands around his cheeks as if caressing him.

Jimmy feels himself getting asphyxiated. In silent horror, he sees his blood dripping away from his brain.

"Keep struggling Jimmy, I can see you are awake, but it is too late by now. You will soon be out of this misery. Let me handle you gently. "

Jimmy tries to shout, but he can hardly open his mouth.

After what seems like an eternity, he suddenly manages to spring to his feet.

"Hey listen, this is Jimmy, speaking for myself. I know about the primal right, but it is not about pulling the plug. It is not that obvious. It is the right to see and the right to speak. That is my fucking primal right. You cannot deny it from myself. I will live to see, and I will live to speak. "

Jimmy is staring into the wide eyes of his friends. It is bright sunlight now, and he is standing outside their tent. They are looking at him like he is the devil.

"What the devil, Jimmy ? What the hell are you talking about ?"

Jimmy looks back into the woods, "I was sitting under a tree, somewhere beyond those woods over there. I had a real bad nightmare, I cannot understand how I walked down here all by myself."

One of his friends says, "There are some strange woods down here, I heard that some of the trees discharge hallucinational substances at night, which get washed down by the dew. You look quite crazy Jimmy. Those bloody eyes look like they are ready to pop out any minute. Come in here, have a sip of water. "