SHOWCASE : 2050 A.D.
The two aliens were looking at a showcase in the Museum of Antiquities .There were two statues of biped creatures looking at each other, Beneath the taller of the two was a plaque that read MAN and beneath the other WOMAN
The younger of the two turned to the older and asked, "granddad, who were they?"
" They were called humans and they ruled the world for quite a few thousands of years. They were godlike beings having the gift of Creativity unlike the other animals that roamed the Earth in those days. With this unique gift they built great communities called cities and formed what were called civilizations. Some of these civilizations were more advanced that the other governed by a set of rules called laws.
Many of these civilizations were ruled by both good and evil leaders .Some flourished and prospered, others fell by mismanagement and corruption of the Leaders and their governments. then came two great World Wars in the twentieth century called World War One and Two respectively. These two great wars surpassed all the previous wars ever raged by mankind in both loss of lives and magnitude over the centuries. Millions of lives were lost in the conflicts that ensued on both sides, then came a diabolical creation called the Atomic Bomb and the beginning of what was called the" Nuclear Age" when great weapons of mass destruction were invented.
"And what happened, Grandpa?," prompted the young alien after seeing his grandfather paused a long while as if in contemplation. The old Alien shook his head slowly and said sadly said aloud," Waste! What a waste of lives. The madness and destruction that took place at that time is mind boggling to conceive
Even after being warned to get rid of these terrible weapons of mass destruction by what was called the United Nations.-a governing body of nations that attempted to keep the world a safe, secure and peaceful place among nations -the arrogant super powers went ahead and unleash those weapons on each other in what was called the Third World War, where there were no winners.! . Fear gripped the Earth as never before and people fell died on their feet from the dreadful fallout by the thousands ! There were nowhere to turn to for refuge at that time, even the mountains were ablaze ".
" That war lasted but a few days and the Aftermath was terrible. All living beings were destroyed by what was called the "fallout", he paused at the dreadful thought, " When we first came to this planet a thousand years ago, it was dead, desolate and soundless, even the seas had dried up. We scoured about for signs of life but no avail , no sign of life was ever found.
" Our Archives said that it was once a flourishing planet, There were beautiful lakes, rivers and pristine rain forests teeming with a variety of life, both plant and animal. Also there were a variety of colorful cultures and, great cities around the world .Wonderful discoveries in both medical and technological sciences were made, but now all that is gone and mere ashes remain. What fools they were, .It’s sickening just to think of it, even after a thousand years.".
"Gee, Grandpa, how could they have been so foolish?"
"That’s a mystery that even the Federation of Planets still cannot fathom, Was it arrogance or a world wide epidemic of insanity that drove them to self destruction?, it remains a mystery to this day "
they then moved on down the wide aisle of ancient artifacts and exhibits
"What is that, Grandpa?" said the young alien pointing to a showcase which boasted a part of an arm grasping a torch.
"The symbol of freedom of a once Great Society that is now extinct," He replied, " We found it buried deep in the sand," he paused looking at the huge Artifact, and added ," but that’s another story! ".
‘Could you tell me about it ,,Please, grandpa ?" urged the young alien.
"Some other time, Luan, It’s getting late and we must go !" he replied firmly and they both left the Giant Museum of Antiquities , one entranced, the other sad.
