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from "The Measure"

2026.03.09
"The Measure" is a plainly written "what if" story with an interesting, almost Twilight Zone premise: what if everyone (22 and older) received a box containing a string EXACTLY corresponding to their overall lifespan. Would you open it? How would would knowing people have long strings or short strings mean culturally? What would it mean for the concept of free will (especially since sometimes people's reaction to the length of their string leads to their demise...)
Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?
Mary Oliver, "The Summer Day"
Be groovy or leave, man.
Bob Dylan
"That's sort of why I hung [the vintage celebrity mugshots] up," Maura said, looking across the display. "They're a reminder that sometimes we screw up, and sometimes the system screws with us, but if you live your life with enough passion and boldness, then that's what you'll be remembered for. Not the crap that happened along the way."
Nikki Erlick, "The Measure"
It is not the length of life, but the depth of life.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Se il per sempre non esiste lo inventeremo noi. [If forever doesn't exist we'll invent it ourselves.]
"The Measure", Nikki Erlick
I arise in the morning torn between a desire to save the world and a desire to savor the world. That makes it hard to plan the day.