It had been 400 years since most of humanity left Earth. The air was breathable once more and the tourist trade on humanity’s former home rose. Joann took her daughter Darcy around to visit the old ruins.
They stood before a crumbling mosque in Turkey while Joann tried to explain Earth’s ancient culture.
“It was a church,” said Joann. “People went there to fill up on happiness when they felt worried or sad.”
“You can get happiness from a church?” wondered the 8-year old.
“No. It’s like I’ve always told you, happiness is a choice. People didn’t know that, so they thought churches would give it to them.”
“Oh, right. So that building in Manhattan was a church too, right?”
“Well, not really.”
“But you said people went there to fill up on happiness but it didn’t really work.”
“I did, Honey, ” sighed Joann. “People just called that building a Bank.”
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Written for What Pegman Saw: https://whatpegmansaw.com/2018/06/16/what-pegman-saw-turkey/
EagleAye
Momus News 
I think the people who most honestly go to a church, synagogue, mosque, or other house of worship, isn’t to “fill up on happiness,” but to have an authentic encounter with God. Of course, there are plenty who go for other reasons.
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The “fill up on happiness” bit is an oversimplification, a result of a much later culture trying to understand a much older one. I think you’re right that some are seeking a spiritual experience, but I would wager the vast majority do not. Just my take on things.
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This is excellent. Rich in humor and wisdom.
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Thank you, Karen! Much appreciated. 🙂
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You’ve given me a smile, EagleAye – thank you! When you can equate banks and places of worship, there’s something wrong with the worship – not that I’m the first to make that observation…
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I completely agree. They “should” be far different things. Unfortunately, the overlap I see is uncanny. Glad you got a smile. I love sharing them. Thanks much! 🙂
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This is a truly fun take on the prompt. I do believe there is a similarity between church and banks and happiness, but then I’m an ex-Catholic. Thanks for the smile.
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Thank you! My pleasure to dish out smiles. 😉
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I always enjoy the ones you provide.
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Funny stuff, Eric! Good to see you.
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Thanks JH! It’s good to be back and see you folks again. 🙂
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ah this is so lovely. I feel like when we try to oversimplify things for a child, we also oversimplify them for ourselves and in doing so we end up seeing things the way they really are. This made me laugh and left me thinking. Banks and churches, i never would have thought of them that way if you hadn’t mentioned it. But now i can’t stop. A great story! 💕
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It’s so true. Perhaps this is the reason great wisdom often comes from children. They haven’t learned to over complicate things yet. I could go on to many other institutions that offer a false front. The list is long. Just this morning I saw a Wren, a tiny bird, sitting on the fence and feeding her babies. That made me happy. We don’t need giant edifices of stone and steel to be happy, we just need to recognize the beauty all around us. Glad you got a laugh. Thanks so much!
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Dear Eric,
Whether or not you try to find happiness in a church or a bank, it’s still a choice. I know people who are never happy no matter what. It’s their choice. Love the gentle truth of this story. Good to see you back on the flash fiction grid.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thing I’ve noticed is, happiness comes from within. It’s inside of us. We just let it out when we do the things we like. That could be going to church, or spending money, or anything. Researchers have found that there’s no one particular thing that makes people happy. People choose to be happy with what they have, or they don’t. Luckily, I don’t need a new sailboat to be happy. A mint mocha does the trick just fine. 😉 Thanks Rochelle! It’s good to be back. 🙂
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There are many different ways to fill up on happiness, interesting point! I always like stories about one culture seeing another from a distance and interpreting it so differently than the people in that culture do or did. I think “Motel of the Mysteries” was my first experience of that, and I still think about that book. That’s the beauty of speculative fiction: it helps us see our own culture through new eyes.
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I do like that about speculative fiction. It’s an effective way to look at our world in the mirror. Glad you enjoyed this. Thanks so much, Joy! 🙂
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I liked the humour of church and bank as filling station for happiness. Children have a way of simplifying things and putting things to perspective.
People don’t go to church to fill up on happiness though.
Church is the hospital of the soul and spirit.
So many who go to church are ill in soul and/or spirit.
If the soul or spirit is in disorder, health of the body will be affected sooner than later.
It’s when the body gets sick and the doctors prescriptions are not helping, that some people gravitate towards the church.
It is well.
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Most cool. Thanks for your perspective. This story is about a much newer culture trying to understand an old one. I imagine we’ve never quite gotten the Egyptians figured out despite all our efforts to understand them.
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The Egyptians are something of an enigma. They used to be a ruling empire so naturally they have their secrets. Because they also had many kingdoms under their rule, they were also like a ‘keeper’, a custodian of sorts of and for this kingdoms.
These comes with secrets too. After all, your ability to keep secrets, secret keeps you in power.
But the disadvantage of keeping secrets is that you become vulnerable to those who know it, either by trust or by chance.
And they could be the bridge that will lead the enemy to you.
The one who exposes the secret owns the secret and the power that comes with it.
And that’s why it’s only in this millenium that a lot of ‘inventions’ and ‘scientific breakthroughs’ are traced back to either Africa, e.g Egypt or Asia e.g China, the original inventors of so many things we were told came from the West.
An example of indigenous secrets being revealed is Chinaware.
Till today, no one can claim ownership of Chinaware, because it was shipped from China.
Back to Egypt. Egypt is also being suppressed by their overlord, who want to maintain control over the real Egyptian culture and the real Egyptian people.
Any attempt to figure out the once great Egyptian empire, will be squashed by their conquerors.
Figuring out and understanding Egypt is not profitable or safe to those who now rule over them, hence the mystery.
I’m just coming to the realisation of the how much power and influence history has, most especially the heavily guarded untold secret history.
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I like the constraint in this story, and the denouement. I also like the way you have put the church and banking in that happiness balance.
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Thanks Kelvin! I’m glad the pieces of it fell together so well. 🙂
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First off, so nice to see your mug!
As much as this is humour, there is definitely a hint of truth here. And you made me laugh at the end, so it’s definitely an Eagle Eye specialty!
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I do like mixing truth and plain good fun together. It’s just a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down. Always happy to know you laughed. It’s good to be back. Thanks much, Dale!
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Religion or money, at the end of the day I guess everyone wants their ‘fill of happiness.’
PS: What’s the new place where Joann & Darcy are currently living like?
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True enough. Everyone gets their fill of happiness their own way. Joann and Darcy are living in a habitat orbiting Mars. 😉
Thanks Bernadette!
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