When the Screens Went Dark

The old Master sat at a table cluttered with strange devices. Flickering screens, glowing crystals, wires as thin as cobwebs – all of it hummed, crackled, and emitted strange signals. His grandson, a boy of about ten, watched him with curiosity.

"Grandpa, what is all this?" he asked, pointing at the devices.

"This, my boy," said the Master, "is what was once called the 'internet.' People believed it was the greatest invention, a treasure trove of all knowledge."

"Why did they 'believe' it? Wasn't it true?"

The Master sighed.

"Have you ever seen a solar storm capable of disabling all electrical devices? Or an electromagnetic pulse that fries microchips? All this happened many years ago. The 'internet' disappeared overnight, and people were left without their 'treasure trove of knowledge.'"

The boy's eyes widened in surprise. He had never heard of this.

"But how did people live without information?" he asked.

The Master smiled and, taking an old, worn book from the shelf, handed it to his grandson.

"Like this," he said. "In books. They are not afraid of storms or pulses. They store the wisdom of centuries and are ready to share it with anyone who can read."

The boy carefully took the book. It smelled of old paper and printing ink. Opening it, he saw even lines of text talking about a world he did not know. A world without flickering screens, but with the rustle of pages, the smell of books, and the silence in which words sounded especially clear.

"Grandpa," said the boy, "will you teach me to read?"

The Master smiled. He knew that the knowledge of the past was now safely preserved in the future. In a future where the book had once again become the most important technology.