The Element of Light

Unique... that was the one word that would describe him. Anthony Williams was not the regular 23 year old male who would spend his free time going out partying or trying to hook up with the ladies... he would rather spend his time either reading something new (be it a book, story on the internet or an article in the news), helping out the elementary school by filling in as a substitute teacher, helping out with the local market (selling produce or other merchandise), the list would go on and on.

People would just wonder as to why he would continuously help others instead of enjoying himself when he got the chance, yet no person was willing to ask him that. The truth was that Anthony was alone in the world, having no family to return to or any true friends to rely on. He was an orphan at the age of 13 (his parents passed away in a car crash driving home from a pizzeria) and his other family simply left him at the orphanage while they stole his inheritance from his parents’ will. Thus he made a commitment to himself that he would always help anyone out as long as they desired to be helped. However, because of his helping nature, many of the children his age has always had a disdained relationship with him, which would eventually lead to ridicule and ostracism.

Anthony didn’t let this bother him for a time, until he reached the age of 15, where he was asked by his teacher what his 3 wishes were for his life. The only 3 things he desired most above all other things in his life were:

• True and honest friends who would be there for him no matter what

• A woman who would love him with all her heart and not try to change him

• A family to love

Wishes like these would only be considered insignificant by any other person who had it, yet for those who did not have it (like Anthony) it was more valued than gold or platinum combined. He longed for company that would accept him for who he was (not to change him into something he is not, for other people’s acceptance), yet because of that the loneliness would grow deeper and even envelop him in the darkness of depression. The only solace he had in aside from helping others was reading stories of fantasy. How he dreamed of being in world of pure fantasy, where magic existed, were helping others was not frowned upon by the society that he lived in today, and to not be alone anymore.

However, Anthony knew better than to let dreams and fantasies rule his life and his better judgement (still a part of him held onto those dreams through the years of high school and college). After graduating, he found work in the public as a substitute teacher (in English Literature), a part-time librarian, and a fruit/vegetable seller at the local market on a weekend basis. Why he did this was not because of income (though he needed the money to live with the bare necessities), it was because he just wanted to help others.

So life continued on like this for him, for nearly a whole year. Though he felt content with helping others in this way, he still felt lonely in his life. Little did he know that on this particular night (New Year’s Eve) after one particular event, his whole way of life and the course of his destiny would change forever…