Magical Realism

The cold air settled in and the snow fell down in heaps, piling up on the streets. The tall

building, what the architects were calling a “skyscraper” was under construction bringing many

new people to the windy city. Even more people were coming to new the brand new World Fair

that would be hosted by Chicago to celebrate Columbus’s arrival to the new world. Chicago, in

the late 1800s was a bustle of industry and innovation, many kids even held jobs in order to help

their families make it in the big city. One child, Malcolm, worked as an apprentice for a local

butcher. Malcolm always desired to do bigger, better things; however, his family needed him to

work this job in order for them to survive the winter. Malcom’s mother worked as a front clerk at

a pharmacy and his father was a bricklayer, whose company had just been instructed to direct all

work on the skyscraper that was going up. The butcher liked Malcolm, he could see the wonder

behind the boy’s eyes as he was intricately cutting the meat, but that wonder was not for

butchery. He could tell Malcolm had no true desire to take after him but he understood

Malcolm’s position and empathized with him. On occasion, he would even bring old books for

Malcolm to read, which Malcolm truly desired and his wonder began to grow.

As a young boy who had no true desire to be an apprentice to a butcher, Malcolm often

grew bored of his daily life, which consisted of going to the butchery for 8 hours, watching his

master work, doing the occasional cleaning, and heading home for dinner and promptly going to

sleep in order to wake up early to head back to the butchery. Malcolm desired, more than

anything, to be able to leave Chicago, to explore the world and see the numerous different things

about the place that he knew so little about. The books provided by the butcher provided some

escape, but nothing comparable to what Malcolm wanted. When the Chicago’s World Fair

finished construction and opened in Mid 1893, Malcolm headed directly for it.
 The design of the World Fair was truly incredible, it looked as though it had been taken

from Ancient Roman architecture. Malcolm walked around with his parents; the first thing he

noticed was the large statue of Christopher Columbus on his ship. The large building contained

many industrial marvels, all coming from different parts of the globe, places Malcolm had only

read about or heard mentioned. One particular innovation fascinated Malcolm, a contraption, that

eliminated the use of stairs. A big rectangular box attached with cables, fitted with cranks,

buttons, and a steel gate, allowed people to move in between floors at ease; something people

called an elevator. While Malcolm’s parents went to find some food, he went to go see this

innovation that fascinated him.

He walked into the largest building that was present at the fair, and as he walked in he

saw the incredible ceiling height, the large amount of people there, the works of art on the wall,

depicting wars, stories, and so much more. He approached the elevator and saw the operator

standing outside. He was dressed as a hotel bellhop with a curly mustache and big build. He

smiled when he saw Malcolm walk up to the elevator, while the other kids when to look at the

more entertaining exhibits. The man said, “Hey kid, wanna take a ride in the elevator?” Malcolm

replied, “Yes, where is it going to take me?” “Anywhere you wanna go kid,” said the man.

Another man in a suit walked up to us and began conversing with the operator under a hushed

tone. Malcolm paid no real attention to this as he was trying to look at the huge cables that you

could scarcely see at the top of the elevator. “Hey kid, I gotta go do something for my boss, stay

here, don’t touch anything, and I’ll take you up when I get back,” said the operator.

Malcolm could not wait any longer and he promptly stepped into the elevator, his parents

still waiting in line to get food from a booth. As he stepped into the elevator, he saw the buttons

with different numbers on them; he knew they corresponded to different floors. But, in the corner
of his eye, ever so slightly was an indent into the silver plated frame. The indent had no symbol

on it, but still looked like it could be pressed. Malcolm, being the curious young boy he is,

pushed the button and the elevator doors closed and immediately shot up. The force pushed

Malcolm into the floor and after about 10 seconds, the elevator suddenly stopped and Malcolm

had arrived at his destination. The doors opened, Malcolm stepped out, and saw a wide creek

flowing in front of him, with sand on either side. He reluctantly stepped out, upon which, he saw

the largest bird he had ever seen, with dark blue wings and two long tails trailing behind the

animal. Wondering where the bird went, Malcolm ran out of the elevator, all the apprehension

left his body, and he ran after the bird. The bird led him through some woods until they finally

hit a clearing. The creek still ran right next to Malcolm, but now he heard the loud roar of a

waterfall crashing over 50 feet below him. Down under, he also saw what seemed to be remains

of an old city, abandoned. There was a labyrinth of pathways in the ruins that Malcolm wanted to

explore but he could not see a way to get down there safely. Without hesitation, the bird landed

next to Malcolm and laid down, seemingly signaling Malcolm to climb on its back, which he did.

The bird took off and Malcolm felt the wind, the warm fresh air hit his face, he saw the animals

that met at the base of the waterfall to drink water, he saw the beautiful line of trees that seemed

to extend beyond his vision.

After they landed, Malcolm got off the back of the bird and turned to pet and thank the

bird. He walked towards the ruins and up the stairs into what seemed to be the main entrance. As

he walked in, he saw the strange carvings on the wall, images of people and animals living

harmoniously. It made him believe that there had to be some people in the strange place he was

in, and perhaps they would be the ones to give him the answers he was looking for. He journeyed

deeper into the ruins, learning the history of the place. The carvings of the animals clearly
showed they were not the conventional dogs or rabbits one might find, but rather larger and more

beautiful. Malcolm began to wonder if his parents were worrying about where he was, and

thought it best to head back from where he arrived. After navigating his way back, he arrived at

the base of the ruins, expecting to find the bird that brought him here. However, to his

fascination, he saw hundreds of different kinds of animals, some of which he recognized from

the carvings. He saw a bear with the head of a platypus, a giant bee with the head of a panda, a

leopard with the face of a monkey, and so much more. Malcolm was in awe of the magical

creatures that stood in front of him; furthermore, he noticed that they were as much in awe of

him as he was of them. They stood still, watching his every move as he approached them.

Malcolm reached his hand out to the bear and slowly began to pet him as the other animals

watched and circled around him. One by one, Malcolm touched every animal that was there, and

finally, he had found what he was looking for.

The bear took Malcolm back to the base of the creek where he found the elevator once

again, and he got in. He turned and looked back at the animals which were all standing outside

the elevator. “I’ll see you soon!” shouted Malcolm. He pressed the button that read “Lobby” and

the elevator began to slowly descend. As the elevator stopped and the doors opened, he found the

operator waiting for him. Rather than being angry, which Malcolm expected him to be for

operating the elevator without supervision, the operator looked down at him, smiled and asked,

“So what did you think of the elevator, quite the contraption isn’t it young man?” Malcolm

smiled back and said, “yes, yes it is.” Malcolm reunited with his parents, with whom he walked

around the rest of the fair, looking at more of the incredible displays. But nothing swayed

Malcolm, as his attention remained fixated on the amazing world that he had discovered and he

thought of the next time he would return.