Two days before the end of the world, he suddenly realized he had never truly lived.

His calendar was full, except for two untouched days.

He panicked. Restless and furious, he went to the angel of death to ask god for more days.

He shouted and cursed. He raged at the heavens and the earth. He screamed and made a scene.

The angel remained silent.

He clung desperately to the angel. He blasphemed and threw away his prayer rug. Then his heart broke, he wept, and he fell onto the prayer rug.

This time, the angel broke the silence and said: “Know this, you have just lost another day! Only one day remains. Come, at least live this one.”

Through his sobs he whispered, “But with one day… what can anyone possibly do in one day?”

The angel said: “The one who tastes the joy of living a single day has lived a thousand years. And the one who does not understand today, a thousand years will not help him.”

Then the angel poured the share of one day’s life into his hands and said: “Now go. Live.”

He stood there, stunned, staring at life glowing in the hollow of his palms. But he was afraid to move, afraid to walk. What if a drop of life slipped through his fingers?

He stood still for a moment. Then he thought: “When I have no tomorrow, what is the point of saving this life? Let me spend this handful of it.”

And so he began to run. He splashed life over his face, he drank it, he breathed it in. And he was filled with such ecstasy that he felt that he could run to the edge of the world, step on the sun, and beyond…

That day, he did not build a skyscraper. He did not own land. He did not gain status, but…

In that single day, he lay on the grass. He watched a ladybug.

He lifted his head and saw the clouds. He greeted strangers. He prayed sincerely for those who did not love him.

In that one day, he reconciled. He laughed. He felt light. He enjoyed. He overflowed. He forgave. He loved. He let go. And it was complete.

He lived that one day.

But in god’s calendar, the angels wrote: “he passed away, the one who had lived a thousand years.“

Erfan Nazarahar