A day in Wedland

Miss April withered away (a Wedlandian tale)

Miss April got her name because she was born in April.

As a little girl she was very adorable, and time allowed her to grow into a very beautiful woman. How beautiful was she? It is said she was so beautiful, that she would spend several hours admiring herself in the mirror.

Those eyes! Those lips! Those cheeks! How could anyone resist her? Miss April was sure about it, her beauty could rival that of Aphrodite herself, and she would even so for all to hear. Of course, one should never compare oneself to an Olympian, especially when it comes to beauty. Miss April didn't know this, but Aphrodite was deeply offended, and she would make sure to have her revenge.

One day, as she was admiring her reflection in the mirror, she let out a piercing shriek, for she noticed something which made her blood freeze and her hands go numb. Miss April couldn't believe her eyes! On her head there was a single silver hair, standing proudly and defiantly, proud of how different it was from the others. Furious and with eyes full of tears, she sentenced this single hair to death. She grabbed a pair of scissors and snipped it clean off. It was as if it had never existed.

Just then, a thought struck her. It was in that moment she realised that beauty, like the prettiest flower, doesn't last forever. In the end, it is taken away by the hands of time. Although she was still very young, she knew she had to do something. If she couldn't stop time, at least she would act as if it didn't exist.

And so, she went to a portraitist and asked him to immortalize her on canvas. She was very specific. It had to be done by her twenty fifth birthday, in exactly a week's time, for she would unveil it in front of all her birthday guests. The portraitist rubbed his hands in delight, for she was a worthy model. She wore her prettiest pink dress for the occasion. She sat on a chair and posed. She rested her left elbow on an open book, while she held a white handkerchief with her right hand. Looking slightly to the side, she made sure she was showing her precious locket, for not only was it her most prized valuable, but it had to appear on the portrait.

The portraitist was very skilful. In less than a week, the portrait was finished, and as promised, it was unveiled on her birthday party. The guests were all very surprised, for they couldn't tell the real Miss April from the one on canvas. They had before them twins!

Miss April had got what she wanted, and ordered all her mirrors to be disposed of.

Miss April had her portrait hanging on the living room wall. So pleased was she with her portrait, that every day she would admire herself in her canvas. She felt she had been victorious, for in canvas, she would always remain beautiful, frozen in time, and therefore, so would she.

Poor Miss April! If only she had known. One should not take time very lightly, for one cannot avoid it, and neither can one cheat it.

One day, a week after her after her birthday, as she was admiring herself in her portrait, she noticed something which made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. On her painted head stood a single silver hair. Was this some kind of joke? Had it been the portraitist? That was not possible, for when she picked it up, her portrait had no white hair. Was it done by one of her birthday guests? Very unlikely, for she would have noticed. Miss April shrugged. Maybe it was simply a scratch. The rest looked perfect, just like her!

Oh how she would admire herself in the portrait! Long hours would pass, and she would never once become separated from it. Some of her staff members even began suspecting she wasn't eating, for it would become very difficult to separate her from her painted self.

A month passed, and on a normal day, as normal as any, while Miss April was admiring herself, she noticed something different about the portrait. Somehow, the portrait seemed much darker, even on a clear and sunny day. It was as if the colours used for the painting had lost their shade of brightness. How bizarre, but Miss April did not care, for she still looked perfect.