Further

Credit: Max Rymsha

Dear Bara,

It is June 15, 2030 as I write this letter. If all has gone well, it is June 15, 2020 as you read it. We used to think a lot could happen in a few years. We had no idea. We had no idea what this paradigm shift meant for us, the lives it would change, the things that would come to light, the journey our species would be dragged kicking and screaming into. But we learned. The world you hoped that we would build… it’s ours now, and a future much stranger than the one I write to you from stretches far ahead.

Do you remember when we were younger, when we dreamed of watching a sunrise on a new planet? Do you remember when, against all odds and all common sense, we pictured us taking those deep breaths, as we gazed at an alien horizon? It seems so long ago now. We never stopped believing it was possible. Through all our doubts and fears, that one dream never wavered. Well... as I write these words to you, I am part of the first wave of human colonists on Mars, as humanity takes another giant leap forward in its existential journey. A fresh start, a clean slate, a sustainable future, and all because a young boy, and thousands like him, dared to dream.

We learned from the catastrophes, Bara. As our world recovered, we tried just a little harder, and that was all it took. The ills still remained, the specters of poverty, hunger, crime, disease and pollution, but a will that only hard lessons could bestow spurred us on, to let our better angels shine through. Suddenly, the old, convenient ways didn’t matter anymore. Suddenly, the things that all seemed so complicated became so fucking simple – who knew they always were, right? Suddenly, we realized what was really important, and took those bold steps towards a new world, hardly perfect, but certainly better. And then, a little older, a little wiser, we reached for the stars.

A twilight glow illuminates the district outside my window as I write these words, the dazzling blocks of the habitat dome spanning the breadth of Elysium Planitia, humanity’s first extraterrestrial settlement. We helped build this, Bara, we and the others, the Advent, those who would give humanity a future. But even we never foresaw the cosmic fluke that would enable me to send this letter to you, or the dangers that would make it necessary. Now humanity has not only its present, but its history to protect. That is why I am writing this letter, to tell you to never stop hoping, to never stop dreaming, to never stop learning, to row against the tide of darkness. The way will be hard, and you will suffer greatly, but no matter what happens, Bara, promise me you will never give up! Promise me you will find the Advent, find the members of our generation who carry the Spark. Lead humanity together, lead them onward into this bright and strange future. Create, innovate, build, and with your species, hand in hand, take that giant leap forward, those brave steps further.

Good luck.

Sincerely,

Your Future Self

P.S. The hard drive in the time capsule is keyed to our DNA as well. Treat its contents with caution. Also, the sunrises on this rock are spectacular. The pictures you’ve seen don’t do them justice. Something to look forward to.

© 2020 Barra Hart. All rights reserved.

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