2024-06-16 - DEMANDING ATTENTION OF YOU ALL

Learning to understand each other has been a difficult process for the inhabitant within Canyon and The Mother. Eventually, the egg-bound one was able to figure out that The Mother could hear them - but to her they were faint and unintelligible, no matter how loudly they yelled. The Mother had been distracted earlier, when they had first discovered language, that was why she didn't hear them. What it was that distracted her, the inhabitant within Canyon still had no idea.

There was also the problem of the fact that there wasn't much for the inhabitant within Canyon to talk about, since there was so little they knew. They would repeatedly ask What? or Where? or Why? or How?, but The Mother seemed to just interpret this as general confusion - which wasn't entirely inaccurate, but she didn't seem to understand that the inhabitant within Canyon wanted her to alleviate the confusion by explaining things to them. It was endlessly frustrating.

Then there was a point where The Mother was talking, murmuring, Yes, it's time to turn you now, isn't it, and there was ... someone else.

The Mother then redirected her attention, asking, And how are you doing, little one? It was another someone else! A different someone else than the someone else The Mother was just talking to!

The Mother was methodical, checking in on so many someone elses, one after another after another. It was as disorienting as an earthquake that didn't stop, as the inhabitant within Canyon searched for something, anything they could hold onto, so their mind could grasp what they were perceiving. Finally, they stumbled on a memory of a word, one The Mother used often and one that they had never understood.

Oh! Mother! Is clutch? Is this clutch?

The Mother turned her attention towards the inhabitant within Canyon. There was a pause. Everything seemed to still as they waited, wondering if this would be the moment The Mother would finally answer one of their questions.

You seem to be doing all right, The Mother finally said.

ATTENTION! IS CLUTCH? IS THIS CLUTCH??? they yelled.

Another pause. A longer one. Had The Mother heard them now? Would she answer now?

No, there's nothing wrong. You're doing just fine. The Mother then turned her attention to yet another someone else. And how about you?

Just throw the inhabitant within Canyon's hope off a cliff and let it shatter into infinite tiny pieces at rock bottom, huh? Fine. (It really wasn't fine.)

The inhabitant within Canyon let out a wordless scream of frustration. The Mother paid them no heed.

Then they struck upon an excellent idea. Maybe The Mother couldn't really hear them, but these others could?

Screaming as loudly as they could, the inhabitant within Canyon announced, HELLO! HELLO CLUTCH! WELCOME CLUTCH! HELLO AND WELCOME CLUTCH! IS ME! HOW ARE YOU? HOW ARE YOU ALL???

They waited. And waited. And waited. No response.

They tried again. HELLO! IS ME! IS ME DEMANDING ATTENTION OF YOU ALL! CAN YOU HEAR ME???

More waiting. And waiting. And waiting. No response still.

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY???