Dear Stranger

Dear stranger who finds this diary,

This is the only account you will find written in this diary as I am not much of a writer. I do not despise writing; it’s just that I don’t think I have anything important to write about. But now that I have lost my will to live, I think I should write something about myself and my experiences. After all I might be the last person on earth. Unless of course if you’re reading this, in which case, I am terribly mistaken.

My name is Jeremy and I am 19 years old. After the Collapse, I have been on my own. The only person in my town, other than I, who survived the collapse was my friend Hank, but he died soon after, when one fine day upon my insistence, we went down to the lake to fish and he fell into the lake. Hank and I had buried all the bodies that were lying around in our neighborhood. We even said prayers for their peaceful journey to heaven. But now that Hank is no more, I usually ignore the bodies whenever I come across one. I have been surviving on packaged food and water that I could find but they are all gone now. There is no food or packaged water. No electricity. And worst of all- no internet.

I cannot cook or garden or hunt or even start a fire without a match. So the fact that I have survived for over two years on my own is completely surprising.  

Don’t judge me too harshly but most of the time I play games on the cell phones that I have gathered over time until they run out of battery, after which they are of no use.

In the beginning I didn’t know what to make of this. Many people survived the bomb. I mean our homes were damaged and buildings were torn to shreds, but at least there were people. But the disease that followed, swept everyone away. I watched my friends and family collapse one after another. Soon the entire town was full of dead bodies. They just fell on the ground. It was horrible. Hank said it was a biological bomb devised by the Chinese. Some said it was in the water, some said air. I still don’t understand how I survived or Why?. Losing your loved ones is the worst feeling in the world. Losing everyone you love or know or would have known is something else. I have scouted the entire town every single day for some sign of life. There is none. 

Anyways, the reason I am writing here is to tell you that I do not wish to live any longer. You could say this is a suicide note but here’s the thing- I am not going to kill myself. I will die a natural death. I will not aid the process but I will not make any attempts to survive either. Given the place and conditions I am in, it should not take too long.

Dear stranger,

I have not died yet. And since I promised not to kill myself it would be wrong of me to starve myself. So I decided to eat some fruits. I climbed this tree just across the lake where Hank drowned to reach these pear-shaped fruits that looked so delicious. I bruised my hands and knees in the process. I bit into it without a giving it a second-thought. I didn’t care if it was poisonous.

The fruit was disgusting. It left a terrible aftertaste- like that of a cigarette.

I think I will die of starvation.

Dear stranger,

I have decided to embark on a journey. I don’t know where east or west is anymore. Never learned it. Not proud of it. I miss Google. Anyways I am embarking on a journey in some direction to find another human being. I will not stop until I am able to find someone. As there is no food left in my town I have to find someone. Once again I will not try to not-kill myself. If a bear attacks me I will not defend myself or run away. I will let the wild beast maul and devour me. Barring these two bottles of water, the last packets of chocolate and candies, a sleeping bag, one flashlight, several lighters and some undergarments, I am not carrying anything with me on this journey. If exhaustion kills me, so be it.

Dear stranger,

It has been three days since I started my journey. The only food I have had are these sugar candies that I carried with me. I have not met any human yet, although I did find 15 bottles of packaged water on the way. Since I have decided to not delay my death, I only took 3 bottles with me. I might die of starvation or exhaustion soon.

Dear stranger,

I haven’t slept peacefully for days now. Slightest noise wakes me up. I miss my home and my bed. I wish I could go back. I think I am moving closer to death each moment. My flashlight ran out of juice and I have been using my lighter too often. I believe it will run out of gas soon.

Dear stranger,

I drank water out of a stream today. I guess this is it then. It was a pleasure.

Dear Stranger,

Guess what, I am still alive. The stream water wasn’t poisonous I guess. I filled my empty bottle from the same stream and have restarted my journey. I am out of the woods and on a highway. There are few vehicles here. But none had food or water. I found a Rubik’s cube though. I haven’t been able to solve it. It’s frustrating.

Dear stranger,

I don’t want to call you stranger any more. I feel like I know you. You are a friend. I feel like I know so much about you. You are kind, patient, a good reader and the fact that you are reading someone else’s diary tells me that you do not value others’ privacy. Don’t fret. It’s okay nosy parker.

Dear stranger friend,

You will not believe what happened today. I met a human. I MET A HUMAN. I was walking down this graveled path when I heard footsteps. I ran for my life fearing it might be a wild animal. It was not a wild animal. Her name is Mildred. She is 19 years old too. She took me to her community where I met more people. There are around fifty people here. They have food and water and even electricity here. They welcomed me to stay and I accepted. Mildred told me that my town was the worst hit area and that they believed no one had survived. Also you will be shocked to hear this but Mildred says I am mistaken and that it has only been 70 days since the dropping of the bomb. And you and I thought it had been 2 years. It’s weird.

Dear stranger friend,

I know it has been a while but you see I have been really busy. I’m learning how to garden and hunt and start a fire-without a match. I can even tell where east and west is. They are exactly opposite to each other. Who would’ve guessed? Anyhow, before you call me a liar, let me assure you that I haven’t changed my mind about dying. I promise you, I will die. In the way nature intends. I will die a natural death, like I promised. But I will not aid, or for that matter, hasten the process.