Image by Reimund Bertrams from Pixabay
Flash Fiction #150
Aila and Nali have been long time friends since their high school days. Nali and her family just come back from a trip to California where they visited places in LA, and drove along the coastal Highway 1 up north until they reached San Francisco.
“Oh, the mountains are … breathtaking. I mean the West Coast mountains are just created more beautifully.” Nali says.
Aila says, “Mountains often look beautiful from a distance, but when one gets close to it, one can see the rugged surface, the ugly stones, the wild unruly vegetation. Or when it is barren with no cover of greenery, it looks even worse. Or sometimes the beautiful hills are covered with cow dungs. I’ve seen it.”
Nali says, “Oh, Aila…. We are old friends and I really know you. You are often… Well, what can I say? You need to relax and enjoy life. Stop thinking of negative thoughts, you know…”
Aila says, “The reason I am so negative is because I grew up under a big narcissistic mother, who dismissed my existence through quiet and soft verbal abuse…”
Nali says, “Oh, Aila, are you talking about your mother again? I mean I met your mother when we were in high school. She’s always friendly to me. And she’s very polite too. I don’t understand why you are always so negative about her. I always think that she’s a dynamic woman and a college professor too. You should be proud to have such a mother.”
Aila says, “You know she’s like the beautiful mountains you saw. You didn’t have to live with her…”
Haoyan Do 
Sometimes people seem normal until you see their true self.
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Well, tell me about it. People can be very surprising. Many of our notion about others are just based on their exteriors…
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So true, I always think we never know the real person inside. We all put up these masks for people but never reveal our full true self.
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Yes, people can often be surprising. Sometimes I have to say I surprise myself. I think my opinion about myself is probably not accurately reflect who I really am. I think I try to be, but often I give in to the desire of having a projected image…
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I don’t think anyones opinion of themselves is correct. Our ego tries to protect us from seeing the bad parts of ourselves.
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I love how you frame this, Haoyan. Yes, often, things look beautiful from afar. Sad but true…
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Thank you for your sweet encouragement. Yes, from afar. That’s the underlying reason for beauty.
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Love the last line here—very powerful comparison and writing.
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Thank you for your sweet encouragement. I tried. LOL.
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That is a great analogy, especially with narcissistic family members.
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Thank you for saying this. Yes, a narcissistic family is like a beautiful mountain. You are soooooooo right. Happy New Year and Wish you have a great 2023!!!
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Beautiful story!
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A lot of people are like those mountains in one way or another, I think.
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Haha, you are sooo right. We often know a person’s facade but not the inside…
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