The Transcendence of the Cicada

Gregor blinks feverishly, almost choking on his own breathe. He continues blinking, attempting to refocus the room. He looks around scanning his small apartment room. The sun shines brightly through the window, casting rays of light as thick as bed sheets. He rolls on his side and feels something underneath him. He shifts to remove the object. It’s the magazine he had bought the other day, a women’s fashion magazine.  Gregor sits up and opens the magazine and begins looking at the pictures. He passes the spring sections and all the new styles. Then he comes to a particular picture.  It’s woman wearing several fur-covered articles of clothing. Gregor stares at this woman for a while laughing at the fact that she strikes a remarkable resemblance to his sister, Grete and with this similarity, he imagines Grete wearing such exquisite furs. Gregor lets out a subtle chuckle and rips the page from the magazine. He takes the page, gets up and walks up to a framed picture he has on his wall. He removes the group photo from last year’s office Christmas party and replaces it with the magazine page, then returns the frame to its original spot.

 Gregor begins to walk towards the door.  He stumbles on his fabric samples cluttered across the floor. Gregor lets out a groan, the fabrics remind him of his job, which depresses him. Every day he slaves to provide for his family and fight his family’s crippling debt. The realization that his only day off this month is being spent doing chores and running errands is enough to make Gregor’s stomach churn.

 Gregor groans and goes on with his normal routine, the same droll routine he has had for years. His chores go the same; toilets, windows, then the floors, same as his other days off. Then he takes the same route to the same stores where he gets the same food and drinks for his coming weeks. Gregor pays the cashier and begins to push his shopping cart towards the street, because he is parked across the street.

Suddenly the cart is jerked to a stop and one of his milk jugs launches over and smashes, spilling across the pavement. An odd woman is standing directly in front of him stopping the cart with her large, dirty, grimy boot. The woman bares an odd expression on her face, much like the face someone makes when they recognize you, but can’t figure out where from. She is tall, but bone thin. She appears large; however her flowing ragged clothing makes one suspect otherwise. Gregor notices her odd assortments of pendants and jewelry. Alligator heads and penguin beaks are strung around her neck. A pungent odor emits from the assortment of silks wrapped around the woman. Finally she speaks, “YOU! I know you!” Gregor jumps back in surprise and fear; “I’m sorry ma’am, but I don’t know you,” Gregor replies. She moves swiftly getting directly in front of Gregor now.  The gypsy woman exclaims, “You! Your family will never be free of their curse until you make the hardest sacrifice of all. They are cursed with obesity, gluttony, and laziness. These are all a result of your actions. You do everything for them and they still sit and your efforts go unappreciated. You must transcend this world and set yourself free as well as your family from their grip of demotivation.  There is only one way out.  Take the flight of the cicada!” The gypsy then cups her hands. Gregor is frozen with confusion. The gypsy blows into her hands and rather large bug, a cicada, flies from her hands and flies towards Gregor. Gregor frozen in fear doesn’t make a move, its like he is in some sort of trance. The cicada flies into Gregor’s mouth and down his throat. Gregor’s trance breaks and he coughs and chokes. Finally, he stops, realizing he has already swallowed the bug. “What was that?” Gregor shouts. The gypsy woman says no more and steps back. Gregor, flustered and confused, rushes back to his car and then house.

He replays the incident repeatedly over and over again in his head as he puts away his groceries. Gregor skitters up to his bed, exhausted from his work. Gregor feels very cold as he climbs into bed. He forms a cocoon with his blankets and prepares for his slumber. He tosses and turns in discomfort. Gregor feels hot then cold, then hot again, stomach aching the entire time. “Stupid Gypsy,” Gregor utters. He replays the events in the parking lot. He thinks about the bug, he thinks how bugs act and what it would be like if he was a bug. Slowly, he falls asleep. Images of bugs and leaves blaze through Gregor’s head. He can feel his body tingle much like when you sleep on your arm. The overwhelming sensation fills his body, burning now. Just when Gregor feels as though he will die in during his slumber, the sensation stops, he feels cold. Then finally, he opens his eyes.