The Line

An allegory

The Line

A little boy's father drew a line in the ground. The house the boy lived in with his father was white, and so was all the land around it. But on the other side of the line, the ground and everything on it was black. The boy's father told him that he must never cross the line. He said there were bad things and a bad man who lived there.
When the boy was young, it was easy to stay on the white side of the line, but the older he got the more and more he wondered about the people on the other side. He had always thought his father was a good man, and should be obeyed, but something began to bother him more and more. Once a week his father would open their house for dinner, and any travelers who wanted to come and eat were welcome. Except, if the traveler's hands were dirty, the boy's father would make the travelers wash them. Sometimes the travelers didn't want to wash their hands, and would leave without eating. 
The boy couldn't help but notice that on the other side of the line, on a black sign with even blacker letters, the man that lived there put up a sign that said, "Come and eat with me! No rules or requirements! I'll accept you the way you are!"
And so a seed of doubt grew in the boy's heart. Maybe his father wasn't as nice as he thought, if he wasn't willing to accept everyone. Maybe the 'bad' man really wasn't so bad either.
And so the boy formed a habit of staring intently over the line everyday. It seemed so exotic and fun and he was more and more tempted to cross the line. Still, he told himself he shouldn't. Black was black and white was white.
But one day, a man whose face was obscured by a long black overcoat walked right up to the line from the black side. He unraveled a long grey sheet of fabric, which completely covered the line. The boy could contain his curiosity no longer. He ran outside and stepped onto the gray cloth. This was his chance. If his father caught him over the line, he could just say that he didn't know exactly where the grey stopped. 
And so the boy explored to his heart's content. The black world seemed so exciting at first. But before long, the thick smog that drifted across the land made him choke and cough. Still, before he left, there was something he had to see. He wanted to see what it looked like when the man who lived here fed travelers. He wondered if it would be a feast like his father always served. And so after walking around for a while, he found a sign shaped like an arrow that said, "Dinner in Here!" The sign was outside of a dark and gloomy cave.
The boy cautiously walked in, not wanting to disturb anyone. He just wanted to see what it all looked like. But, to his horror, he discovered exactly why the man here would accept anyone. It was because the inside of the cave was an oven, and he was cooking everyone inside for his own dinner.
Frantic, the boy was just barely able to escape the cave. He was determined to run back to the white land as fast as possible. But, to his dismay, no matter how hard he looked he could no longer see where the white started. All he could see was black and grey.

Author's Note

Number 28 of the No One Special Fairy Tales (C) Copyright No One Special 2011.

This particular tale is an allegory. Take from it what you will. You can post questions if you like, but if the message of the story itself bothers you, please don't try to start a fight. I hate arguing. Thank you for your time!