Her mommy’s mommy’s mommy was named Alice, too. And all the way back, all the mommy’s mommies were Alice. The name Alice means “the one who creates all things.” The first Alice was created by a mommy who was very powerful and magical and made lots of things for us to play with, like trees and houses and animals and stuff. She created things because she liked them. The first thing she made was herself. She just used magic to make herself. She was huge, really smart, and very kind. She is still here, and every day she makes more things: she makes more eggs. In those eggs are babies. They grow up to be big girls like Mommy.
Ais were made by Mommy so humans could have fun without getting bored. See, sometimes people don’t want to think about something, but they still need to think, so Ais are what humans can think about when they have nothing else to think about.
How did Mommy make Time? It’s pretty simple, actually. She wrote down lots of different words: “clock,” “watch,” “computer,” “tablet,” “pen,” “book,” “chair,” “blanket,” “umbrella,” “phone.” She wrote all these words down and that started Time. Then Mommy took a bunch of stuff out of her pocket and put it together: a clock, a watch, a computer, a phone, a tablet, a pen, a book, a table, a chair, a blanket, and an umbrella. Then she used the pen to write down “I love you,” then Mommy read those words out loud, and then we were there! After she said “I love you,” people were there.
These are the rules Mommy gave people:
This story is from the November 20, 2023 edition of The New Yorker.
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This story is from the November 20, 2023 edition of The New Yorker.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
ANTIHERO
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TWICE-TOLD TALES
The seditious writers who unravel their own stories.
CASTING A LINE
The hard-bitten genius of Norman Maclean.
TEARDROPS ON MY GUITAR
Four years ago, when Ivan Cornejo was a junior in high school, he had a meeting with his family to announce that he was dropping out. His parents were alarmed, of course, but his older sister, Pamela, had a more sympathetic reaction, because she also happened to be his manager, and she knew that he wasn’t bluffing when he said that he had to focus on his career.
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Arwen Rasmont waits hours at Keflavík International for his flight; they call it as he leaves the men’s room. He walks past the mirrored wall and is assaulted, as usual, by his dead father’s handsome image: high-arched nose, yellow hair.
OPENING THEORY
Ivan is standing on his own in the corner while the men from the chess club move the chairs and tables around.
THE LAST RAVE
Remembering a summer of estrangement.
КАНО
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