Sunday, July 12, 2009

Entry #83

Identity
by Ryan Collins


You stand in front of a dinner party. Friends stare up at you. You search for the words to describe the wine you hold, but with no label where to start?

“There are 457 bottles exactly like this one downstairs. I received all of them last week in boxes shipped from my father. As to their content, I’d guess some are Sauvignon Blanc and some are Shiraz. Some of them must be Cabernets, and some should be Pinot. I’d also bet there are some Merlots and Chardonnays in the mix. Truth be told, I don’t now, I was never much of a wine guy.”

“Sure! We all know that’s true!” Shouts a friend.

You smile, “They all come in different shapes and bottle sizes. They all have different colors and come from differing vineyards and differing parts of the world. Some are grand-cru and cost hundreds, maybe even thousands of dollars. Others were bought from Mainelys down the street for a couple bucks. Yet, for all their differences they share one common, universal fact: they have all lost their label.”

“Oh right! Your parent’s house flooded last year,” comments another friend.

“Is the loss of a label a tragedy? I think not. In fact, I think we’ve been given a scarce freedom. We’ve been given the freedom to discover our own label and to justly decide if there’s truth, after all, in the wine. With that, my father’s words come to mind, ‘Identity is made, not written.’ Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

16 comments:

Laurel said...

YAY! I love the notion of having to decide what you like without a social validator. Fun. And boy do I wish I was friends with that guy!

JR's Thumbprints said...

It's interesting that you chose a second person POV but limited most of it to dialogue--that works in your favor with the title. I'm intrigued.

laughingwolf said...

nazdarovja! ;)

Catherine Vibert said...

Cool! The story itself replaces the need for a label, and I doubt there would be many that wouldn't want to play.

Aniket Thakkar said...

Seriously. Remove the label and I would never ever be able to tell which is which. (Well, my wine sense is so bad, I won't be able to tell which is better, even with the label intact :))

But I often ponder over 'Identity' and its significance. I even wrote a poem on it over a month back.

I loved his take on it. To not know, can be a bliss. For Sherlock Holmes once said 'Everything unknown is taken to be magnificient' :)

Like it a lot.

Therese said...

What an original idea! I really enjoyed your main character's point of view. Dialogue was eloquent, and it's just a thoughtful piece. Well done.

Chris Eldin said...

I loved the POV here. Deftly written!!

Aimee Laine said...

Love this! So much is said "between the lines".

Adisha said...

Beautiful !! The freedom to choose your own path around life ... well done !

Hoodie said...

Great metaphor, nicely presented. Good job!

BernardL said...

A journey of discovery. :)

Mona said...

this is a very 'symbolic' tale of self discovery!

PJD said...

This is a story about prejudice and how it can only exist when there are overt markers to identify something. This was a very nice story, thoughtful and smooth, with a hint of chestnut.

I almost wish you had titled it "Untitled." Almost.

Katherine Napier said...

What a nice visual to imagine being part of.

JaneyV said...

I love this one. It makes me feel free just reading it. Nice job!

Word verification: faverit ;0)

Anonymous said...

I like the philosophical slant. The expectation, the weight is removed. Only what is.

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