A Magical Journey - A Winner's Anthology

Cursed Spring - Immortalwritings95

The following is a winning entry from our contest Spring Fiesta 2022. Congratulations to all our winners! The full list of winners can be found here.

This year is always going to be remembered as the year that spring forgot to bring out happiness.

The Spring season is the definition of hope, prosperity and life. This season comes after the harsh challenges of winter which depicts the darkness, cold and silence. When a person goes through the winter, he always has one thing in mind, which is the warmth of the sun and the fragrance of the blooming flowers in the upcoming spring. Therefore spring is supposed to be the favourite season of all because it carries the hope of a new and fresh start.

But this year everything's changed. This spring forgot to bring hope, instead, it brought dread, sadness and depression. This year nobody is going to celebrate the growth of new life or dance to the tunes of chirping birds. This year no boy is going to propose to his girlfriend behind a meadow of flowers. This year nobody is going to be excited at the prospect of family picnics or a dip in the cold water under the sun.

Because this year our town is cursed.

A couple of months back there was a couple travelling through our town. That couple was renting a room in one of the motels but one fateful night the man was walking alone in the streets in the cold of the night. Unfortunately, that man was mugged and stabbed, with no one to help him in sight.

As he was bleeding out in the cold street, somehow his wife found him and started shouting for help but no one listened to her. She banged on the windows and doors but no one responded. She begged but no one came to help her and then it was too late to save him. Therefore that man left this world with his widowed wife grieving beside him.

When the morning rolled, that woman tried to find justice for her late husband by reporting the murder to the police. But even after one week, there was no progress. It looked like the police were not even interested in trying to find the culprit. Ultimately the woman lost her faith in the people of our town. She became angry and frustrated. She couldn't believe the coldness of this town. Not a single hand came to her aid and this made her furious.

One fine morning when the snow was starting to get soft, she came to the community park across the church and started collecting people around her.

"I am the widow of the man that died in the streets of your town. The man who was killed by your people. The man who no one helped. The man whose justice is being ignored by this town."

"This town, like everyone else, is looking forward to the next month, the month that ends the winter and brings the joys of spring. But you people don't deserve that warmth or happiness that you have robbed from me. The people of this town are colder than the harshness of winter snow therefore you will get what you deserve."

"It is said that, 'When we come to the end of our rope, that is where we find God'. So, today I am calling to all the Gods in the heaven above and the power that resides beyond the mighty ocean to come and help me find justice. Today with every cell in my body I curse this town to never experience the joy and warmth brought by spring."

"The land of this town will never give birth to a blooming flower or any crop. The air you breathe will lose its fragrance. The chirping insects will forget their way to this town. The sky will be covered in the perpetual darkness of clouds."

"This town will remember this time as the year that spring forgot to bless you with joy and happiness."

This way our town was cursed because of our own cold deeds by a grieving widow.

Initially, everyone believed that the woman was just rambling in her anger and nobody took her seriously. Even the council members dismissed her and her curse. But now it's been two months since that woman placed her curse upon our town and now people have started to have doubts, as we are in the middle of April and still the grass is no greener than it was in February. In fact, it looked much duller than it was in winter. And slowly to everyone's despair, everything she said was coming true.

The people's frustration and gloominess were increasing day by day, they were losing hope. The council members knew that they had to do something to lift the curse, so they started finding the widow in nearby towns and cities but couldn't find her anywhere.

One day an old lady came forward,

"This town was cursed because we couldn't find justice for that man."

From that day the council along with the police opened the investigation in the hopes of finding the culprit. Everyone was praying while waiting for the day the curse would lift. But even after a month, the police couldn't find a single clue, filling the town with even more dreadfulness.

The spring season was almost over with no perks of it but that day a poster was pinned on the community notice board and surprisingly each and every resident of the town agreed to it full-heartedly.

"From this day, this town will be known for its helpful nature. The priority of every citizen will be to look after each other and grow together. We don't know if this town will ever enjoy the warmth of spring but we will make sure to find our happiness by helping others.

On behalf of this town, The Council ask for your apology dear traveller for the grief we have caused you. We can't return your husband but we ask you to consider forgiving us for our cold and ignorant behaviour. We are truly sorry."