Twice in the past few days I somehow managed to sneak into one of those ‘Hi, my

name is Pandora and welcome to my unboxing video’ videos. And oh boy, did we unpack.

It’s almost as if we opened a can of worms and instead of there being a ‘can worth’ number

of worms, it was thousands, millions even. Good luck trying to catch them all (like

Pokemon!).

Two very different unboxing, but both equally unnerving. I’m almost back on earth, back on

my feet, and still.. I shiver.

The first box was bound to get opened sooner or later. It just sits there, somewhat

uncomfortably between the aisles and the shelves, it was destined to be knocked down by

some immature creature and unboxed. I never did expect Pandora and her sharp little

fingers. It took me a few days, but I caught all the worms (or at least the ones that wanted to

be caught), put them back in the box and.. closed it. It took me by surprise just how easy that

was. I put it back on a shelf and walked away. And I know, it will get knocked down and

unbox again, maybe several times, but I’m prepared for that. It’s like a ritual that we need to

go through from time to time, to make sure that all the pieces still fit.

And did they fit this time, did you check, Pandora?

From the books:

“If I had a box full of all the evils of the world, I'd open it just a little way and push you inside.

Then I'd close it again for always.”

The second box was destined to get me. No kidding there even was a burnt message on a

side. It just said ‘GETHER”. But as this is my story, we all know who ‘her’ is in this scenario.

And the thing is, it did not hold a surprise, not anymore, but it remained unclear whether this

is the whole truth now, or just a half? Will more truth come out later, is there anything at

the bottom of this box that needs scraping? The thing is, I might never know. And I should

follow your advice, the one that helped me get back on track when I thought my live has

crashed and burned. But it is hard to let go. Maybe if all the truth comes out, there will be no

way back. Or maybe there will be? I am ready to risk it, let it go, deal with the consequences.

‘Come get me demons, take me home’. But Pandora is smiling and is not unboxing all the

way. From the angle she is holding a box I cannot see if this is just an attempt to torture me,

because the box is empty, or is Pandora trying to protect me by hiding something. Something

that would send my life crashing and burning one more time. I say one, but who knows many

more times she has in mind.

‘Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional’.

It just caught me off guard, that’s all. I have let most of it go, and it wasn’t hurting anymore.

So it comes as a bit of a surprise that it still manages to cause pain. But if we have managed

all of that, we will manage this as well, eh world?

I come to the Casino at the End of the World just as Pandora is leaving. Boxless, which I

thought was kind of ironic. Where are you going to hide all your cheating cards, girl? You’ve

got no sleeves!

Once I’m inside I cannot seem to make up my mind. Which game to play, which table to

choose. Should I gamble? I feel old and everyone in here feels too young to be here. But if I

still want to gamble, do I need to find another Casino? I check around, metaphorically, the End

of the World, and there is not much to choose from.

Boxless Pandora may have gotten it right this time.

From books:

“Let me finish my beer.

Of course. The end of the world can wait.”