the story of the illusionist, part one

it isn't every day that you meet someone that is willing to share his story with you. on any given day, people come and go in our lives, and we catch fleeting moments of time with them. the value of such moments varies between the seller, and it is only the top sellers where gaining these moments are most valuable.

that is backwards thinking, you say?

so it was by chance that i met someone that thinks like this. this person's name is horace. horace is a quiet and eccentric individual that is doing what you and i seek to do in our lives: make a living. but instead of doing this by any conventional method such as earning an education and applying for a job and such, horace has some different plans. horace has plans to become an illusionist. when i asked horace whether he got the idea from the movie "the illusionist" starring edward norton, he said he didn't know what i was talking about. i found that surprising, but i also didn't put it past him.

one of the interesting things about horace is that he is quiet. not quiet in terms of volume, but quiet in terms of.. not talking much. that sounds normal enough, but as i mentioned earlier, horace believes that a seller has power to increase value of his commodity. and so he does, limiting his communication to the absolute bare necessities. he shares very little about himself, even if you attempt to pry it out from him.

so why does he think so highly of himself?
i can certainly answer that, but it will first take a bit of time to understand the person of horace.

seeing that communication is limited with horace, would you think that he is a boring, uninteresting, and unengaging person to be friends with?

you would think so, but horace is full of surprises. my main method of interaction with him is through letters. since having the pleasure of meeting horace (which i will also discuss with you in the future, sorry!), we have met up on occasion for a coffee or something of that nature where we exchange a few words, and he would hand me letters. the meeting would end quicker than the time it takes for the sugar to melt in your coffee. on a good day, we would talk for half a cup of coffee.

but it is not in the talking where the spirit of horace comes alive. it is in the letters. this person of horace has affected me so much that i though i would share it with you. i've asked for his permission to write his story, and he responded in terse words: "if it's worthwhile". you may not agree with all the things horace says or believes in, but we will ultimately see if it is worthwhile.

so as i unfold the first letter, i invite you to join me in delving into the world of illusion.

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dear victor,

this is my first letter to you. let me tell you now that you are living in a world of decline. it is an information age, and information is true power. one that reveals their true power will lose all their power. but the other that holds back will have the final word. these letters are my way of holding back. it is my way of monitoring what form of the information was released. if you do not agree with me, then you can give me back my letter right now.

let me tell you now that i have plans for the future. i decide that money is what you need for the future. so to have a future, i must have money. there are multitudes of methods to gain large amounts of money, but i believe that i have found my method. i will become a magician. an illusionist. i know everything there is about illusions and people. i am willing to share with you my secrets. if you do not betray me, then i will share my secrets with you. if you do, then i will destroy you.

the life of an illusionist is a frugal one. you don't understand the meaning of frugal until you have lived the life of an illusionist. it is having complete access to resources, but choosing to use as little of it as possible. it is cutting as many corners corners as you can cut. spend money for your bare necessities. you save that money. save it and invest it into something. the illusionist must invest it in the illusions. the best illusions are still to be discovered, but you need to have resources to do it: time and money. and when you find them, the illusions pay for themselves in multitudes.

horace

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the letter ends abruptly. many times i would stay behind at the coffee shop to read the letter while enjoying a cup of coffee. i fold the letter and put it in my pocket. the coffee is strong but not sweet enough, because i can never get the right amount of sugar. i will have to wait till my next meeting with horace to increase the number of sugar packets to three.