The Land of the Disabled
One day, I had a dream where I found myself on an island. This was a land of the disabled. It was said that this place was the result of one of God's mistakes, causing most of the people here to be disabled, with very few healthy individuals. In this society, status wasn't determined by profession or wealth, but rather by physical health and the degree of bodily integrity.
When visitors first arrived here, someone with one leg longer than the other would serve us a cup of clear tea. Due to the significant difference in the length of his legs, he walked as if he were jumping into pits, bouncing severely. Therefore, what seemed like an easy task for a healthy person—balancing a cup of tea without spilling it—required great effort from him. Thus, when he placed a fragrant cup of tea adorned with flower petals steadily in front of us, I was deeply moved and sincerely thanked him for his work, even though he had only served me a cup of tea.
He had just stepped back when a girl with only one leg danced for us under the winter trees. Then, a man with only one hand came to peel an apple for us. Although his arm ended abruptly at the wrist, resembling a stick, his arm seemed to have a magnetic force, coordinating with another hand to peel the apple and pass it over. One of the male companions wanted to smoke, and a blind person came over to light his cigarette. After the host and guests exchanged pleasantries, we began to speak. To our surprise, the elder sitting in the main seat who had been smiling and nodding, indicating for us to drink tea and eat fruit, was mute. A blind person beside him spoke on his behalf.
Our hosts told us that there was no arguing or crime here. People were gentle and never fought. The disputes, brawls, and quarrels we commonly see on the streets did not exist here. Arguing and playing around here was considered extremely shameful because some could speak while others couldn’t—how could they argue? Some had two legs, some had one, and others used wheelchairs—how could they fight? More importantly, they understood better than us: God gave us a mouth so we could communicate, not argue; He gave us hands to work and help each other, not steal or point fingers; He gave us legs to walk, not chase and do evil; He gave us a spine so we could stand tall, not bend it for fame and profit; He gave us intelligence to live better, not to scheme and fight against heaven and earth and each other; He gave us health so we could live well, not to take more after eating and drinking our fill and then occupy others' resources.
In short, everything God or nature created for us has its purpose, yet we humans have misused all of it. Originally, God created humans because the Earth was too lonely. However, instead of bringing peace, humans made the Earth unbearable. We ravaged its skin (cutting down forests, destroying fields to build houses), severed its bones (mining various minerals, including coal and ores), drained its blood (extracting oil, over-pumping groundwater), suffocated its breath (exploiting natural gas and coal gas), obscured its vision (air pollution), and stifled its breathing (destroying vegetation, forests, and grasslands). As long as the Earth still has life, humans will continue to exploit it until destruction.
Waking up from the dream and looking at the world around me, I broke out in a cold sweat.