Let it Be

The rule for this contest is that you have 15 minutes to write a story or poem. The prompt was a picture of a brick building in apparent ruin.

The first of the Subterraneans didn’t emerge until fifteen years after the Final War. Historians suspect that some may have come up sooner only to succumb to the lingering radiation that remained high in many of the formerly high population areas.

Nearly fifty years later, they still celebrate Daybreak; a global holiday of remembrance. There are no fireworks or parades with tanks and marching soldiers. Such things no longer existed.

By global decree, the only activity allowed was to remember the past; specifically, to remember the Final War. Many people took advantage of this holiday to tour the decimated cities. The “Let it Be” law forever preserved the ruins. These historical sites were left untouched and served as the ultimate reminder of man’s potential for his own destruction.

Schools taught the causes. Students learned about the Old World at a very young age. Different cultures and different beliefs fueled the pervasive fires of intolerance. Fear bred fear until mankind could only turn his head away as triggers were blindly pulled.

“Sister Mary, look over there. It’s an old bicycle. Can I have it?”

“No, Paul. Let it be, just let it be.”