Photo by Justyn Warner on Unsplash

The Blank Masterpiece: The second short story

I once stood with a blank canvass in front of me. My classmates were beginning to draw their biggest masterpiece for the final assignment of the art class, yet I stood there inanimate and clueless as to what I should draw. Five minutes remained, and the canvass remained the same. All my classmates suddenly noticed a bright glow striking my canvass, resonating it for the entire class to see. I never noticed this light, but I did not care of it, I was more bewildered by the fact of how amused they seemed to be when they contemplated my canvass. They seemed impressed by it, even though it was entirely in blank. For them, the picture radiated a nostalgic feel that penetrated and released the deepest memories from their heart. They were all smiling, laughing, reminiscing of their most lively and beautiful moments. I remained ignorant; I could not fathom how they felt this cheerful over a blank portrait. It wasn’t until a girl approached me, and told me what she witnessed, that I could comprehend my “true work of art”. She told me how the painting resembled all her joyous memories and thoughts embodied in a canvass. She then smiled at me, but when I tried to smile back, she was already gone. I stood up and realized everybody also vanished. I then walked towards the window and saw that everyone was outside under the vibrant sunlight, feeling that nostalgic wind. I decided to close my eyes for a second, and once I opened them, that colorful and vivacious ambient was now dark and serene. My classmates vanished with the arrival of this now dreadful day. It was here when I soon discovered my epiphany. I sprinted towards my canvass, trying to find an answer. I wanted to feel that same nostalgia, I wanted to feel that same happiness. My dull mind and cold heart were not giving me that result. As I dove deeper into the void of my heart and mind, more tears began to fall, I was closer to realizing my truth. Suddenly there it was, that spark of light I was searching for, however it vanished as quickly as that girl vanished from my eyes. I whimpered, and out of frustration and deception I decided to throw away the canvass, but right before I could do so I noticed there was something on the canvass. It was the smile of that girl, a smile that I could admire for only mere seconds before subsiding, leaving the canvass blank again. This made it all clear to me. This canvass is a manifestation of one’s happiness. That smile was only a glimpse of what happiness truly feels like, but for the rest of my life I will never see a single thing ever painted on that canvass again. I decided to hang the portrait in the hallway of school for everybody to admire. With the pass of the years, the portrait was constantly traveling around the world. For more than 50 years the portrait was exhibited in almost every important museum in the world. However, there was one thing that never changed in those 50 years. I always perceived my portrait as a blank canvass. I submitted my work unanimously with the title The Blank Masterpiece.