geo geller

February 20, 2014

THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD

Filed under: — GeoGeller @ 5:10 am

work in progress
Island & Land Stories
A View From the Other Side
There is a place, far away and yet very near… a very special place where dreams are made

“THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD”

most marvelous of marvels the most wondrous of wonders, the eighth
and most incredible wonder of them all”

dedicated to you and to wonder
by
geo geller

email: geo@geogeller.com
(story board for film or children’s book)
copyright 1993 ver 12993

SECRECY AGREEMENT
(attached to book)

I hereby agree that i the undersigned, promise to uphold the secrecy agreement of all those who have seen and will see the eighth wonder of the world. i do solemnly swear that upon seeing the eighth wonder of the world, that i will not tell anybody about what i have seen or show it to anyone without their promise of secrecy…

NOTICE AND WARNING
(attached to replica)

notice and warning to those who are thinking of breaking or not uphold this secrecy agreement, about the eighth wonder of the world… not only may the magic disappear for you and others who hear about it but you probably have not understood and seen the real wonder and magic behind the eighth wonder of the world… which all those who have seen it and kept the secret can testify to; but, you are hereby warned, that if you thinking of breaking the trust and secrecy agreement.. you are about to commit a serious crime of trying to destroy the magic of innocence and dreams… the worst of all crimes one can do to oneself and to others… before you violate this agreement we suggest that you think very seriously about it.

“THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD”

* one day while i was sitting on a park bench this very old man came and sat down next to me… he was wearing a black coat, a white shirt, he had a *cane made from some wood i had never seen before… he wore a little beret… we sat there in silence for a long time… i was lost in my thoughts… when i noticed he had something in his hand, it was wrapped in black cloth and he was petting it as if it were a baby …

* i can’t remember what happened next but for some reason we started talking. he told me the most incredible story i had ever heard… he had traveled all over the world one day while he was on the beach in Bahia Brazil near the 17th parallel.

* he was fishing on the beach one morning when he came across this bottle. a strange big flat bottle had washed up on the shore, it had barnacles and moss growing all over it. he picked it up pulled the cork out and looked inside. he found a letter and something he couldn’t figure out how they fit it through the tiny hole in the bottle…

* the letter said that it was put in the water somewhere in Africa and inside the bottle was the eighth wonder of the world. it said that the person who finds this has to take care of it… he looked at it and read the letter over and over… he thought maybe it was a sign… since he was fishing, maybe this is what i was fishing for… what do i do? he kept saying to himself… he was in shock for a long time… i don’t know what to do? maybe it’s better if i give it back to the sea for some one else to find…

* he began to wrap it up the way he found it and throw it back in the sea… when all of a sudden, just as he was about to throw it… as if out of nowhere, he thought… what am i doing!… this might be something really important, it could change the world!… the eighth wonder of the world?… am i crazy? … i can’t do that… i’m supposed to take care of it…

* i said, excitedly, what did you do?… he looked at me and suddenly he asked me, what i would do ?… i thought for a moment and said… i don’t know?… well, me neither… it was beyond belief… i asked, what was it ? he said, let me tell you the story first… he left the beach after a few days of walking around in circles talking to himself..


* he had finally figured out that it was an old glass buoy fisherman used on their nets and that someone had flatten the glass buoy and cut it in half, put the eighth wonder of the world in it before gluing it and putting it in the water… he had already opened the bottle up and took out the eighth wonder of the world and put it into a nice wooden box that he had carried some paints in and wrapped it in a black cloth to protect it… he showed it to me and said till this day it has never been out of his hands, he even sleeps with it… here i am, i have eighth wonder of the world it is something wonderful what am i going to do with it… he thought, i should share it…

* one day while in Seville, Spain he decided to try an experiment, he made a sign that said “8a maravillas del mundo” the 8th wonder of the world… some people looked at him as if he was strange but only children wanted to know what it was… first he had to tell them that it was a secret and that they couldn’t tell anybody what it was… they had to promise not to tell anybody otherwise the magic may disappear… very few adults were interested.

* one by one children would come and look under the black cloth they would be surprised and stare and when they were finished they would have these big smiles on their faces… he then would reminded them about their promise to keep the secret..

* sometimes there were so many children that he would have to do small groups. one boy in Gibraltar asked, after seeing the eighth wonder, asked, “if he now had the power” and the old man smiled and said of course. there were many stories he could tell me as his eyes lit up with the memories… many children from all over the world have seen it, he said. you see, if people have a secret it is as if the have discovered most valuable treasure. many people have seen the eighth wonder and has changed many lives.

* but, now i am old and tired, i have not the strength to go on. i have taken care of the eighth wonder as if it was my child but i don’t know what will happen when i am no longer able to… i listened very carefully to what he said… my mind was racing a thousand miles a minute and i didn’t know where to begin… it was all a jumble in my mind… i could see he was tired inside.

* i said what about a museum… he said in all his years very few adults were interested enough to even look at the eighth wonder… they have no imagination… they will put it away in some box or draw and no one will ever see it again… it would be very sad… he said he thought about throwing it back into the sea… he tried but couldn’t…

* i asked if he found anybody who could help him and he said no… i only talk to children… adults cannot hear they are too busy to listen to an old man with foolish children’s stories… but children love it and tell their friends… it was wonderful to see what a little dream could do, he said… i asked, what are you going to do?”… i don’t know* he said…


* just then a little boy came up with a group of his friends. the old man recognized some of them from before… his sign was on the other side of him… the little boy asked if he could see… the old man said to the boy you know what i have here… the boy nodded his head, it is the most marvelous of marvels the most wondrous of wonders, the eighth and most incredible wonder of them all… and the little boy said he wanted to see it and the old man asked him again, if he was sure… the boy said yes, and the old man said, very seriously, that if he was to see the eighth wonder of the world he would have to promise not to tell anyone, it was a secret… or else the magic may disappear not only for him but for all others who heard its secret… and the boy said he promised…

* the old man invited the boy to come to his side and he put the black cloth over his head so that he was the only one who could see it. he looked and looked and when he was finished he came out and all the children gathered around him laughing and smiling wanting to see the look on their friends face…

* the old man put his finger up to his lips and they all understood about their promise and then he looked at the smiling boy and all the children. “is that not the most wonderful of wonders, the most marvelous of marvels you have ever seen?” the boy smiled with his big two front teeth missing and said yes and thank you to the old man as they all ran off..

* by this time i was besides myself with curiosity and the old man was just sitting there quietly. i asked him, “if i could see it now” and he asked me, are you sure you want to see it… i said yes, yes i want to see it… well, i have to tell you that it is a secret you cannot reveal it to anyone or else the magic may disappear for not only for you but for all others who hear about its’ secret… i said, yes, yes please! i promise that i will keep it a secret and not tell anyone.

* he prepared the cloth and told me to put my hands out so i could hold it since he was tired and as he began to put the black cloth over my head and for the first time i was thinking to myself i am going to see something really special, it may change my whole life. i was excited, and when he finally put the black cloth over my head and i opened and adjusted my eyes and could see this was indeed one of the most wonderful of wonders, marvel of marvels. i felt so pleased and special. i thought to myself, how wonderful and lucky i was… i took a long look at this magical of the eighth wonder of the world… and when i took my head out from under the cloth to thank the old man i too was smiling…

* to my surprise he was gone! nowhere to be found! i looked all over for him, but he was gone and their i was left with the eighth wonder of the world and his sign that i hadn’t seen before… i wondered as he must have wondered what am i going to do ?… how could this be happening to me ? here i am, with one of the marvels of the world and i am at a loss of what do and i thought and thought…

—-
* i thought about the old man and his story and what he did and i went home and i started to write in my journal. i wrote like i had never written before, and as i was writing, i thought to myself, let me share this story with you and children all over the world… and then i thought about how nice it would be, if you and they could see the eighth wonder of the world, and i thought about what the old man said, “it’s a secret and that the magic may disappear for me and all who heard about it”. well, i couldn’t have that happen… i thought about what to do and about the old man and what he said… and then it came to me while i was dreaming that if the secret were still kept… the old man trusted people with the secret why couldn’t i… then i thought if it was still a secret and if somebody wanted to see the eighth wonder they could sign an agreement promising not to tell anyone and sent in a letter telling why they wanted to see the eighth wonder of the world… i would send them their very own replica of the eighth wonder of the world that has been given its magic by the original.. but, they must keep their promise and take care of the eighth wonder of the world.. and so i wrote this book about the eighth wonder of the world just for you.
——————————————————–

copyright 1993 geo geller 280 9th ave #20B, NYC 10001 email: geo@geogeller.com

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