A Wonderful World

Harvest Moon

I woke up in the same room as I had awakened the day before. Or was I in the same room? All the units should be exact carbon copies of each other. I looked around and saw the same lack of ornaments as I saw in Joni's house. As I was starting to get off the bed, I noticed a man on the floor. What a good guy, that Joni. I must have been exhausted, fell asleep at the bonfire, and been carried back. I'll have to be careful not to wake him up. I stepped over him and snuck through the front door. Let's see the wonders of this world.

I could almost taste the colors of the landscape. I saw the green rolling hills, the sapphire blue water in the background, and the excruciatingly bright off-white sun. And then the windmills. Dozens, if not thousands, dotted the land. It was a constant reminder of the injustice of this new world. If they didn't exist, maybe people would get along fine here and never think about the unfairness of it all. Ignorance could have been bliss, but these windmills were a blatant sign of oppression. Poor Irinia, I really wondered if I could do something to help her.

I didn't want to wander too far off, so I made my way back to Joni's house. I already saw smoke coming out of his chimney. I opened the door and he looked right at me with his giant smile.

"Good morning buddy!" he said loudly. "I made you some tea."

"Whoa, thanks!" I said, reaching for the cup he offered. I took a sip and felt a strange texture running through my mouth, down my throat, and in my stomach. It sloshed a bit, I licked my lips, and couldn't put my finger on it. It kind of tasted like soup. I had to mentally prepare myself before trying another sip.

"What um." I started. "What is this, Joni? I mean, it's delicious but I've never had it before."

"It's butter tea!" he laughed. "Best breakfast for a full day's work. You and me, we the cowboys now!"

"Oh right, work." I said. "I almost forgot we have to work on this paradise."

Joni laughed again. "You are some jokester. Just try not to think about it as work. We don't get paid anything, but at least we get free housing."

"And we don't have to pay for utilities!" my attempt at a joke.

"Exactly! It's easy work too, so life can't get any worse." said Joni.

I don't know, maybe my 25-year-old loser self would have agreed with that statement. Perhaps I would have been happy talking to cows every day for the rest of my life if everything else was taken care of. I mean, it was better than taking care of robots. I just couldn't help thinking of Irinia's sadness, her silent sobbing on my shoulder. If she was like that towards the situation, wouldn't others be that way too? I couldn't get her out of my mind while we walked towards the cows.

The work was incredibly easy. Joni just shouted good morning to the cows and they all left. We spent the rest of the day watering the plants, foraging for food, and eating snacks. I swear the hours started to feel like they passed by in minutes.

"Hey Joni," I asked, "when can we see Kato and Irinia again?"

Joni had a huge smile. "You can't get her off of your mind after she livened you up?"

I gently pushed him away. "It's not like that. I just want to make sure she's okay."

"Sure sure." said Joni. "We'll see them at the next weekly bonfire."

And with that, days passed by without any interruption. It was like time was fast-forwarded as I thoroughly learned the ropes of being a cow boy. If my grandpa saw me, he would be proud. If he had an old, abandoned farm waiting for me to inherit, I would probably be able to fully restore it, get married, and live a wonderful life. And have a dog.