The Time Traveler

One of the most creative podcast episodes of 2022 that emerged when reality and fiction collided.

Bzzzzzzzzzz…..

Huh.. What time is that?

Oh.. it’s already five o’clock.

I guess it’s time for me to write the script for my podcast.

I should probably stop watching YouTube right now.

But may be just one more video that can inspire me.

Okay… I think I will just refresh my home page and see what the algorithm recommends one last time. Here it comes.

This is not what I want to see. That is interesting but not inspiring so I’ll skip that.

And this YouTuber is no longer my favorite one, so no, thank you.

Wait… ‘Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness’.

Oh … This is the trailer of one of the upcoming Marvel movies.

I think I will just see this trailer and get back to my work.

Okay…

Wow.. this one has quite a dark vibe.

Man, I’m the kind of guy who’s into so much of science fiction, including time travel.

But everything related to Doctor Strange is so mystical. I mean his way of time travel has nothing to do with science. I guess this cinematic version of time travel and multiverse is just not my thing.

…

Wait a minute.

Why do I feel like all the characters are talking to me?

Something is not right.

Why is my laptop screen getting super bright suddenly?

Woah.. woah.. the table is vibrating.

Is this an earthquake?

Wait. Earthquake… earthquake… Is this an earthquake?

Damn! What happened to my voice?

(COUGH)

What is wrong with my voice?

No no no!

Damn… my voice is now like an echo. What is going on??

And the screen is getting bigger and brighter… Is the screen moving forward to me?

Oh no! I’m being pulled into the screen.

No no no!!!

Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Aaaaaaaaaaaaahh!!!!

…

Aaaaah!

Oh… what the hell was that?

Wait. Where am I?

Hum? How come I’m in my bedroom. Was I dreaming just now?

But no… this is not the same bed sheet I had this morning.

And where is the mosquito net?

And that lamp. That’s not where it’s supposed to be. I’d moved it out of the bedroom since a while ago. And the back door is supposed to be open.

Wait a minute. There are noises coming from the living room.

(CLASSROOM NOISES)

…

A class! A class! That’s a class with students laughing!

It sounds like they’re laughing at someone’s jokes or remarks.

So, there’s gotta be someone teaching them.

Woah, wait a minute. That’s one of the exercises from my Ear Training Course!

But if I’m here in the bedroom, who is teaching them?

…

Huh?

No way.

That sounds exactly like my voice.

And speaking of my voice, why do I still sound echoes? 

Oh no! No no!

That’s impossible!

That’s impossible!

What is happening? Am I going crazy?

Oh wait… the bedroom door! He’s coming!

“Woah!!! Who are you? What the hell are you doing in my bedroom?“

“Your bedroom? Excuse me, this is my bedroom. The question is who the hell are you and why are you teaching my Ear Training Course to that group of students in my place? Are you an impersonator?”

“Hey, what are you talking about? I am Sayar Henry and I designed this course and I’m teaching it to my students in my place. And wait a minute. Why do you look so much like me?“

“Yeah, exactly my thought. You don’t just look exactly like me. You’re even wearing my clothes and you folded the sleeves the exact same way as I do. And wait a minute. Did you just say you are Sayar Henry?”

“Yes, I did. And last time I checked, I don’t have a twin brother. So you better tell me who you are or things are going to be messy in this room very soon.“

“Alright, alright. Calm down. I think I know what’s going on here. I’m not sure if what I think is right, but there’s just one way to find out.”

“Find out what?“

“Tell me, Sayar Henry. What is today’s date?”

“It’s Saturday, 5^th of October 2019.“

“Aaaaahhh. I see. That explains the difference in this bedroom setting and the classroom crowd.”

“Dude, you need to tell me who you are right now.“

“Okay. Hi! Nice to meet you, Sayar Henry. I am also Sayar Henry. And I am from the future.”

“What?“

“I mean I am you. But I’m from April 16^th, 2022.”

“Aaah… what now?“

“So apparently, I’ve travelled through time somehow and ended up here which is about two and a half years in my past.”

“Bullshit! Tell me something more believable than this time travelling nonsense.“

“You don’t believe me.”

“Dude, you may look exactly like me, but you are showing up in my bedroom out of nowhere in the middle of my teaching session, and you start talking nonsense about time travel. Why should I believe you?“

“Okay, listen. If you don’t believe that I’m from the future, at least let me prove that I am you.”

“And how do you plan to achieve that?“

“Okay, look. That lamp over there, you got it as a birthday present. And that blanket, your sister gave it to you. And that bed sheet, you bought it from Ocean Super Market, and you put it on this mattress as soon as you came back from there. And you were even shirtless while doing it.”  

“That’s impressive. But I’m still not convinced.“

“Okay, okay. I can keep going. In that cabinet, if I remember correctly, there’re some drawings you are keeping so dearly because these are from your someone special. Am I right?”

“Yeah, right. But maybe you know it because you were checking my cabinets and drawers before I came in.“

“Look, man. I know you’re not easy to convince because I am you. But this stubbornness gotta stop.”

“Wait! Can you shut up for a minute? One of the students is entering the bathroom to use the toilet.“

“I know we can’t be arguing like this. But ….”

“I said shut up.“

“No, you shut up. I’m not finished.”

“This is my place, so you shut up.“

“No, this is also my place and I’m two and a half years older, so you shut up.”

“Shhhhhh! Okay, I’m going to ask you a question and if you can answer it, I’ll believe that you are me from the future. But if you can’t answer it correctly, you’ll have to leave this place right away and never come back.“

“Okay. I’m listening.”

“When I started my Facebook page in March of 2015, I set up the page name as Sayar Henry. Why was that?“

“You set it up as Sayar Henry so that the initials will stand out as S.H.”

“That’s partially correct. But why did I favor the initials S.H?“

“Well, it’s because S.H. gives the exact same initials as that of Sherlock Holmes. And that’s because Sherlock Holmes is the only fictional character that you can relate to yourself at that point of your life. Am I right?” 

“Yeah. No outsider can have that information unless you really are who you say you are. I guess you’re telling the truth about time travel, then.“

“Aaaah. Finally, thank you for believing me. That’s quite a relief.”

“But seriously though, what’s up with that voice?“

“Damn, you also hear it that way? I thought I was the only one hearing the echoes. I think it has something to do with time travel.”

“Okay, but there’re two things I still don’t get.
(A) Is time travel really possible in 2022?, and
(B) If you can travel through time, why don’t you jump back like a decade or so? Why come back just 2.5 years?“

“Oh, that part, I’m still confused and trying to figure out. With the science I know and the laws of physics at our disposable, I don’t think time travel is possible in any way. At least not scientifically.”

“Then, how did you end up here?“

“Well, I think it was mystical. But if I told you how I got here, I don’t think you would believe it.”

“Dude, I already believe that you are me from the future. And you really are here in your past. So I’m ready to expect the unexpectable. Surprise me.“

“Okay, when I was in 2022 just before THIS, I was watching a movie trailer on YouTube. It’s a Marvel movie. You know, Doctor Strange has this sequel movie that is revolved around the idea of the multiverse. My guess on the premise of the movie was that some of the main characters somehow broke the universe or multiverse and things got out of hand. Then all of a sudden, as I was watching it, the characters from the movie seemed to be talking to me like I’m a part of their story or universe. I felt like they were pulling me into their world as the borders between fiction and reality are also collapsing. Then I saw only darkness on my way here and then suddenly hit some lights and I ended up on my bed … urr.. I mean your bed.” 

“Hunn.. so you’re saying that some mystical energy broke the border between fiction and real life, and that disturbance somehow corrupted the space-time continuum.“

“Yeah.. it’s like some kind of time portal cracked and I was pushed from my timeline to your timeline. Something like that. I don’t know.”

“Are you saying that you jumped from one timeline to another just like they did in Avengers: Endgame movie?”

“Oh, you have seen that movie?”

“Of course, I have. It’s 2019.“

“Oh yeah… Sorry, I felt Endgame was so far away in the past that I even thought it was released in 2018. But anyway, I’m not sure if I’m jumping from one timeline to another like in that movie. I don’t even know how I got here.”

“And wait! Does it also mean that I now have a different future because you and I have encountered? I mean as far as I know from science-fictions, you and I are not supposed to see each other. What does it mean for both of us?”    

“I have no idea, man. All I know is that I want to get back to my timeline as soon as I can. I have so much work to do there. I don’t want to get stuck in 2019… although …”

“Although what?“

“Now that I think of it, it’s actually not bad to be in 2019. It’s far better than 2022.”

“What are you talking about, man? Have you been doing poorly in future because you screwed up in something?“

“No. It’s not like that. There may be some things that I screwed up for sure, but that’s not the reason I said 2019 is better.”

“Okay, so what’s going on in 2022?“

“Dude, it’s time travel. I don’t think I’m supposed to tell you everything. Your timeline may get disturbed because of that information from future and things might get messier back in my timeline too. And don’t you have a class to teach now? You’ve been talking to me for quite a while and your students must be wondering what happened to their teacher.”

“Yeah, right. I do have a class to teach. Not just one class. 4 classes.“

“Yes, I know. It’s Saturday. I remember the usual schedule.”

“I guess I’ll have to dismiss this class early. You and I have so much to talk about. Stay here. I’ll be back soon.“

“Yeah, right … Like I can go to somewhere else from this closed bedroom, or to some time else in this case.”

“Oh My God! This is crazy! Dude, you gotta see this.“

“What?? Are you talking to me?”

“Yeah, you can come out now.” 

“Wow!!! What is this? Everyone is frozen, I mean motionless.”

“Yeah, it’s like their time has frozen. Does it mean time has stopped in this timeline?“

“Wait a minute. It’s just people that is frozen. Look at the birds and the trees. There’s movement with these things.”

“It seems like time has stopped only for people, not for other beings. Ooooh… This is weird!“

“Dude, I think I know what’s going on. Just a bit earlier, you were saying we are not supposed to see each other because that would disrupt the rules of time travel, right?”

“Yeah, I said something like that.“

“If we didn’t see each other, I would go on to explore this timeline and you wouldn’t be aware of my existence here in 2019. And because you wouldn’t know about the time travel, your timeline would still be intact and everything to you would seem normal. But now that we have interacted with each other, your timeline is not working the way it should be.”

“Okay. But, if that depended on us intercepting in existence, why didn’t THIS happen the moment I saw you in the bedroom? I mean one of the students even went into the bathroom as we were arguing, remember?“

“Yeah, that is a good question. Hey… wait a minute, did you notice the sound of water flushing down the toilet stopped too quickly right after you believed that I am from the future?”

“Yeah, I noticed that too. I thought it sounded a bit too unnatural.”  

“So, it’s not just our encounter with each other. It’s also the realization. I mean the acceptance of time travel on your side.”

“Ahh.. I see. So it’s the acknowledgement of time travel, together with the interaction with my future self that caused my timeline to partially freeze. That could be it.“

“But the problem is, we don’t know if time progresses in linear. And if that’s the case, your time being frozen here in 2019 also means that my time in 2022 is frozen too.”

“Yeah, that makes sense. If 2019 progressed with a delay, 2022 must also be delayed because the past events always influence the future.” 

“Exactly. And I think you and I are going to be stuck here in this … frozen temporal zone for a while.”

“So apparently, we have nothing else to do apart from talking to each other.“

“Yup, it looks that way. So… what do you want to talk about?”

“I don’t have much to talk about. Oh … but I do have some questions to ask you.”

“Aaah… Sayar Henry, you want to know about your future, don’t you? But I don’t know how much I can tell you because of the rules of time travel. We have already broken one rule and that got us stuck in here. I don’t want to make things any worse by breaking more rules.”

“Okay, listen.

(A) you don’t have to break any rules, and

(B) I’m just going to ask you some simple Yes/No questions. If you find it too uncomfortable or risky to answer, just say the word and I’ll skip to the next question. That way, you’re not revealing any information deliberately to me, and we’re not really breaking any rules. What do you say about that?“

“Okay, that’s safe enough, I guess.”

“Right, here’s the first question. Judging from the lack of wedding ring, you’re not married in 2022. Yes?“

“Dude! A time traveler is right in front of you and that’s your first question.”

“Well I gotta know how I’ll be doing in that department. Just answer the question, man.“

“Yes. You are right. I’m not married in 2022. Next question please.”

“Earlier, you said there are some things you screwed up. If you meant it’s about your relationship, give me a nod. If it’s not, just shake your head.“

…

“Damn!  I was kind of hoping you’re going to shake your head. But now you’re nodding. What have you done with your relationship, man? What did you do wrong? I thought I’m going somewhere with this relationship. But wait a minute, are we talking about the same relationship? Are you referring to a different one in 2022?“

“No. we’re talking about the same relationship. The same girl.”

“But isn’t she great? I mean things have been going really well with her. I even thought she’s going to be my life partner. Dude, you gotta tell me where things went wrong. I’m going to fix it.“

“Henry, there are a million ways a relationship can go wrong. And not everything is your fault. You cannot fix it. Not from your side at least.”

“Oh shit! Are you saying that you were left behind? Does it mean she’s going to leave me in future? How soon is it going to happen to me?“

“Dude, I cannot answer these questions. The only thing I can tell you is some people change. Some people trade their personality to fit in a new environment or with new people. And over time, their perspectives, their core values, and even desires change entirely. And they start to see people around them in a different way. So my advice is, don’t get too attached to people who have not solidified their personality yet.”

“Woah, that’s really striking for me.“

“Are you already regretting this Q&A session with your future self?”

“No, I’m not. I’m just curious though. Why don’t you try to win her back?“

“I was going to. But then I couldn’t. Something happened. Something big happened.”

“What’s that?“

“That information is too big. It might cause trouble to both of our timelines. I can’t tell you.”

“That sounds very important.“

“You have no idea.”

“Why are you saying it with such a heavy heart? Okay, never mind. Looks like you don’t want to talk much about it. I guess I’ll just ask you less serious questions.“

“Well, that’s up to you.”

“Okay, tell me. What do you miss about 2019?“

“Hmmm… 2019. I miss being able to go out to public places freely, like hanging out at shopping malls or going to the cinema late at night, and of course interacting with my students in real life classroom like you’re doing here.”

“Woah woah woah!!! Wait a minute! Why do you miss interacting with students in a classroom? Are you not a teacher anymore?“

“No no no… I’m still teaching. You know I’ll never quit teaching. It’s my passion, my life’s meaning. You know that. I’m just saying that it’s been a long time that I haven’t interacted with my students in a physical classroom.”

“You are saying you haven’t used this classroom for a really long time.“

“Yup.”

“So how and where exactly are you teaching in 2022? A virtual classroom? Is the technology accelerating that quickly in those 2 years?“

“Oh, no. Not like that. The technology is not that advanced in my time too. It’s just that everyone has to use Zoom.”

“People use what now?“

“I said Zoom.”

“Zoom as in zoom in, or zoom out?“

“Yeah, sort of. But not really.”

“Wait! Zoom. Is that a noun? Or a verb?“

“Oh….sorry. You don’t know it yet. Zoom is the name of a video conferencing application.”

“Ahh. Okay.“

“These days, everyone has to use Zoom to work, to study, to socialize, to do almost everything with other human beings.”     

“Really? I did not see that coming.“

“You have no idea.”

“Wait a minute. You said everyone has to. Why did you use ‘has to’? Are people required to do that? Has it become compulsory to interact virtually?“

“Ummm… Henry, I don’t think you’re ready for it. But something big happened on a global scale and things will never be the same again for everyone.”

“Oh my god. You are saying it in a sinister way. What happened to the world? Oh, I mean what will happen to the world?“

“There’s not much I can tell without breaking the rules of time travel. But I will say this though. You should wash your hands more frequently and encourage everyone you know to do the same. And you should also start working on hand-written style videos for your YouTube channel. You’ll be the first teacher to do that in this country.” 

“Okay, I’ll take note of that.“

“And you should start recording your teaching process digitally in as much details as you can. Invest in a bunch of audio, video and screen capture software and related hardware.”

“Alright, Sayar Henry from future, thank you so much for your tips.“

“Oh. And one more thing. You should watch the movie Contagion.”

“Contagion? You mean the 2011 movie starring Matt Damon, Jude Law and Kate Winslet?“

“Yup.”

“But I’ve seen that one already. Since a long time ago.“

“I know. But you should watch it again.”

“Why?”

“There are things in your future that I can’t tell you about. But that movie can give you a rough idea.”

“Woah woah woah! Stop right there. Are you saying that the world will face a scary situation like in that movie? Will there be a new infectious disease? Are a lot of people going to die?“

“You know I can’t answer these questions.”

“Wait a minute. Is she okay? Is she safe?“

“Oh, come on! She’s okay. She’s fine. Stop worrying about her, will you?”

“Earlier, you said you wanted to try to win the girl back but you couldn’t because something big happened. Were you referring to this disease kind of situation happening in the world?“

“Ahh… that. No, no, no. That’s not what I meant. I meant another thing.”

“What? There’s another big thing.“

“Yeah. Even bigger than the Contagion situation.”

“Dude, I can’t see how two equally huge problems can happen to the world in the timeframe of just two years.“

“Oh. No. This one is not happening to the whole world. It’s just happening in Myanmar.”

“So you’re saying that while the world is facing this pandemic sort of thing, Myanmar is dealing with a different problem?“

“No, no. Myanmar is going through the pandemic AND another crisis at the same time.”

“Ohh no! That is really harsh for a small country like ours.“

“Yeah, tell me about it.”  

“So what’s that second crisis this country will go through? Is there anything you can tell me about?“

(SILENCE)

“Dude…“

“It’s…aaaahhh…”

“Dude, do you hear me? Can you hear me? I’m asking you if you can tell me anything about this crisis.“

“Yeah…yeah.. urr..  What happened is ….. aaaaahhhh.. military… aaaahhhhh…

Revolu……UUUUUMMMMMMM…”

“Hey, hey, what’s going on? Are you okay?“

“Huuuh… ahhh… I’m trying to talk about it, but words don’t come out of my mouth. The minute I start trying to say things out loud, everything inside me hurts. Something is not right.””

“Dude, nothing is right. Look around.“

“What is it?”

“Everything is turning into black and white. We’re losing all the colors.“

“Shit! What’s going on?”

“Woah woah woah!  Do you feel the floor vibrating? This is a bad timing to have an earthquake.“

“Henry, I know what’s going on. This is not an earthquake. It’s the portal. I think the time portal is opening again.”

“What’s going to happen to us?“

“I don’t know about you but I’m pretty sure I’m going to be sucked back into my timeline. That’s how I got here.”

“Mr. Henry and Mr. Henry. Do you copy?“

“Hey, are you hearing this?“

“Thank God, you hear it too. I thought I was hallucinating.”

“Mr. Henry and Mr. Henry. Do you copy?“

“Where is that voice coming from and who is that?“

“I don’t know. I didn’t hear it on my way here. This is new.”

“Mr. Henry and Mr. Henry. Do you copy?“

“Shall we respond to that?“

“Looks like we have no other choice. Let’s respond together.”

“Mr. Henry and Mr. Henry. Do you copy?“

“Yes, copy.”

“Great! Nice to meet you both.“

“Umm… Nice to meet you too, I guess.“

“Who are you?”

“I am the Guardian of Interdimensional Time Travel.“

“Hey, that’s a fancy job you got there. What are your responsibilities?“

“My job is to keep the balance between fictional dimension and reality dimension. It’s also my responsibility to keep the timelines intact.“

“Are you a mystical being?”

“I am half-mystic and half-quantum. So, I can travel through all of time, space, reality, and fiction.“

“Why are you here?“

“Moments ago, there was a surge of energy in the fictional world of Marvel. This interdimensional energy was so strong that it temporarily broke the barriers that are safeguarding between the reality and fiction.“

“But what does it have to do with time travel?”

“Whenever there is a break in the interdimensional barrier, the time portal momentarily opens to help absorb the surge of energy. It then converts that into negative energy to counterbalance the damage of the barrier. Unfortunately, Mr. Henry was being exposed to the fictional world at that exact moment. So you were mistakenly absorbed by the time portal. But since you are not a fictional being, instead of being converted into negative energy, you were pushed back into the negative time. That’s how you ended up in your past.“

“Okay. So what’s going to happen now?“

“Both of you have broken the rule of time travel.“

“As a result, both of your timelines are compromised now, and your reality is becoming unstable. So, I’m going to send the two of you back to your original timelines.“

“Ahh. Finally, a ride back to home. Thank you.”

“And Mr. Henry, you are on the verge of revealing sensitive information that you’re not supposed to. So I’m also going to reset both of you before sending you back home.“

“Woah woah woah, wait a minute. What do you mean you’re going to reset both of us?“

“It means all of your knowledge of time travel, and your memory of this temporal zone will be erased forever. You will start right back where you were before this encounter. And you won’t remember any of this.“

“Oh no! This is the coolest thing I’ll ever have in my memory. Please don’t erase that.“

“Lady, I gotta warn my younger counterpart what is going to happen in our country. It’s a huge deal. It’s about justice, freedom, and humanity. You should not be interfering.”

“Mr. Henry, I’m not interfering. I am just protecting the timeline and everyone’s existence. What your country is going through right now is a fixed event. Nothing you do in the past can change it. Warning your younger counterpart won’t affect the outcome of that event.“

“Is there no other way?”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Henry. There is no other way. You and your country must go through this.“

“Dude, I think the time lady is right. Protecting the timeline is bigger than us. I should not have that information even if I’m allowed to. It’s okay for me without knowing it.“

“Gentlemen, the time portal is closing soon, and I am about to send you back home. Your memory will reset with a countdown.

But Mr. Henry, since you are the one who travelled through time, you will still have some residual energy that will last a few more seconds even after the reset. You may have a chance to briefly look at your younger counterpart in his original timeline before you forget everything.”   

“Okay.”

“The countdown is starting soon. If you want to say parting words to each other, now would be good.“

“Dude, I don’t know what you are going through in 2022 but you still turn out to be strong and okay. If you can manage that without advanced knowledge, so can I. I am you, remember? I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about us in the past. Let go of the past and move on toward your future.“

“Thank you, Henry. I know we won’t remember any of this, but I’m glad that I had a chance to revisit my past and see you. 2019 is a good year. You should savor every moment of it while it lasts.”

“Yeah, I will.“

“Let’s embrace the present and fight for the future, shall we?”

“I like that. Handshake?“

“Sure, handshake.”

TEN, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN, SIX, FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE, ZERO.

(CLASSROOM NOISES)

They have no idea what lies ahead and what they will have to stand up against. Just like we have no idea of what we will accomplish and how we will change the history of this country. We don’t know for sure if the future will be what we wish it to be. But we can do our part to get there as close as possible. And the only way to do that is by joining the fight today, and every day. Because if not us, who? And if not now, when?

— The End —