Army of True Salvation

Kreiss was sitting beside Sheloah, who was still taking her afternoon nap. He was sketching a pencil and eraser as he watched her sleep.

As Kreiss was sketching, he was having a deep thought about the symbolism of a pencil and eraser.

"Are they just simply a pencil and eraser," he mumbled as he continued with his sketch and thoughts.

Once the pencil made a mistake, there would always be an eraser to remove that mistake. But once the eraser was used, it would get smaller and smaller… until there would be no more left.

Kreiss suddenly reflected on his life.

Who is the pencil in his life, and who is the eraser?

In real life, would there be a lot of people who would act like pencils? Do they commit mistakes and rely on the eraser to erase those mistakes as if nothing happened? Are pencils considered stupid people for constantly making mistakes? Or are the erasers the stupid ones for constantly "erasing" their mistakes and there would be nothing left for themselves.

'Who am I in life… a pencil or an eraser?'

Kreiss suddenly remembered the story of his uncle. When he was 15 years old, his uncle would often tell him about the consequences of his actions. He told Kreiss that someday, he would act rashly and would regret of the outcome. He told him a story about a pencil and eraser and since then, Kreiss thought of himself as a pencil.

Kreiss got a book from under his bed. He always kept it there since it was a book that left a great impact in his life. He opened the book and he read it again even though he had memorized it already.

The Pencil and Eraser.

Once upon a time, the pencil was writing on a piece of paper. He committed a mistake and wanted to change it, but he couldn't. Feeling sad, he asked help from the eraser and the eraser gladly accepted his request. The pencil's mistake was big, but despite the size, the eraser removed it as if it didn't hurt her.

The pencil heard her cry because bit by bit, a part of her started to disappear.

"I'm sorry," the pencil said and the eraser was curious.

"About what," she asked, smiling despite the pain.

"Because of me, you would make my mistakes disappear. You lose a part of yourself little by little. Doesn't it hurt," the pencil said and the eraser giggled.

"It's my job, silly! Besides… I enjoy doing it because I sacrifice a part of myself for your happiness even if it hurts me. I love you as I love my job," the eraser explained so the pencil just smiled and took nothing of it as he allowed her to continue on with her work.

As time passed by, the pencil committed more mistakes than ever, not even thinking about what he would write on the paper. He was reliant on the eraser's job since she never complained so he just continued making mistakes. He would notice that her body would get smaller than usual each day, but he didn't care because the eraser would forcibly say that she was fine.

One day, the pencil made another mistake and the eraser was too small for her to make it disappear. Only now that the pencil realized that he made the wrong decision of doing mistakes over and over again.

"It's okay, dear," the eraser answered, forcing out a smile. She coughed as she tried her best breathing.

"No, it isn't! You're about to disappear. It's all my fault. I'm stupid. I was insensitive and just kept acting rashly," the pencil said and the eraser giggled in between coughs as she tried her best to erase the mistake of the pencil.

"It's my job and besides, I have already fulfilled my duty. I am going to be replaced, anyway."

When the eraser said that, she disappeared completely.

The pencil was alone until the owner bought a new eraser. The pencil thought that all erasers were the same but having a new companion with him made him realize that no matter how many erasers were there, everyone was unique and important in their own little ways. He just had to realize their worth and how important they were. There would be no one there to always clear up his mistakes so he had to choose his actions and look at its consequences.