#2: A Haunted Reality

A chanting that you can barely hear or understand occurs down a dim hallway with light from a TV escaping the room.  As you walk closer you begin to hear a rhythmic and repetitive chant: “they say, they say, they say” is what your mind takes in.  You turn and begin to run in terror trying to escape the voices, the ones who tell you what you should buy or should do or who you should be.  While you’re running the voices just get louder and louder, you turn to see that the TV that was once set on its stand in the room is now chasing you blaring advertisements in your face.  The horror has just begun as you realize that it’s not alone but accompanied by the very devices you thought you were safe from.  The phone that you so often use to play games or stay in touch with your friends has now become a collaborator, determined to brain wash you.  It has become an ally and enemy wrapped up in one nice, neat little package.  Not very threatening looking or suspicious because after all, it is what is kept closer to you than anything else.  Your next sight you see disturbs you to your core.  You see your laptop hopping a long with a mischievous dark glow.  It’s opened your favorite browser to the next gadget you want showing all these people having a great time and it seems to be hinting at: “you could be one of us” but only if you had what it shows.  You run, headed for the door to escape your nightmare and see it shining like the sun as it seems to offer hope of freedom. Grabbing the handle you twist it open and exit as hurriedly as you can and lock it behind you. Exhausted you place your back on the door and slide to the ground. A few moments go by and you realize that this, this isn’t right.  You open your eyes and there in front of you are even more advertisements targeting you directly, either via social media, billboards, politicians, movies, music, news channels or by clothing worn on a stranger.  Eventually though, you realize you have the strength to move and not be persuaded by what you want but by only what you need and your nightmare drifts away as you wake up.  You realize it was only a dream and breathe a sigh of relief. Or was it?