The Sounds of Old Earth is a science fiction short story written by writer and website designer, Matthew Kressel. Matthew Kressel has been nominated for several Nebula Awards throughout his career. Matthew Kressel's inspiration for writing this short story arose from two different events.
Contents
In an interview with Lightspeed Magazine, Matthew Kressel revealed two events that led to his inspiration; When he and his girlfriend were in New Platz, New York during hurricane Irene, he sat with his girlfriend on his porch drinking wine, and listening to the frog pond nearby. He saw dust flying around in the air, and he could see Jupiter in the sky. The second event that inspired him was when Kressel was watching a documentary on the dismantling of the old Yankee stadium and the new Yankee stadium being erected in its place. He called the new stadium a plastic version of the original.
Synopsis
Abner, an old man who once designed technology to protect against toxins in Earth's atmosphere, has been laid off, and is now one of the few left on the planet. Most have relocated to New Earth, and Old Earth is now condemned. Shortly before the demolition is set to begin, Abner meets a group of teenage delinquents and invites them into his home, where he keeps frogs. He gets to know Lin, one of the teenagers, who will shortly be relocated to a lower-class planet called Wal-Mart Toyota, and tells her he plans to stay. The next day, the teenagers are gone.
The story then follows Abner's description of his first visit to New Earth. Abner goes to his son Josef's home for his grandson's birthday. His granddaughter, Rachael, is overjoyed that she has received a full scholarship to an orbital university. When she tells of her plans to travel to Old Earth and watch as it gets dismantled, an argument over Abner's home ensues. Abner defends Old Earth and tells Josef that he has forsaken his real home. Josef replies saying New Earth is now his home and that his family has a better life there. Abner is upset that his family feels no sense of belonging to Old Earth like himself.
The story then resumes three days after the kids left Abner's house. He learns from a holdout that the kids have all been evacuated to Wal-Mart Toyota, and Abner realizes that Lin cried at his house because she did not have much time left on Earth. On his way back home, he finds Rachael standing in front of it, and they have a very brief conversation. She tells him she traveled the long distance from New Earth simply to greet him. Rachael asks Abner to promise that he won't do anything reckless when he is forced to evacuate, then leaves.
The story then shifts to Abner reminiscing of happier times. He has a device that allows him to play back some of his memories, projecting them for him to see. He chooses to look at his grandchildren's visit many years ago, his late wife's sixtieth birthday (she died from the Earth's toxins, which Abner couldn't protect her from), and his son Josef's first steps. After viewing them, he sets his house on fire. The police arrive at dawn, and Abner is forced onto a ship to New Earth.
Josef rents Abner an apartment, but he is still not comfortable living on New Earth. One night, he watches as Earth is sliced up and wonders if there are any holdouts left there. The story then skips a few years to Rachael's college graduation. Upon Rachael's request, he leaves with her. They travel back down to New Earth and she tells him that for her graduation thesis she was assigned to recreate an Old Earth ecosystem, and decided to recreate Abner's backyard. Rachael shows him her creation, which has thousands of frogs that are the descendants of some frogs that she collected from Old Earth. She tells Abner that she did this for him so that he could feel a little more at home here. She gives him a deed to the land, and they agree that he will build a big house there, with a lot of room for guests.
Setting
"The Sounds of Old Earth" takes place in two main settings and environments which are followed by multiple sub settings. The first main setting is "Old Earth", which is Matthew Kressel representation of the Earth we live on and are familiar with. The subsetting of Old Earth is New Paltz, specifically Abner's home. His backyard is a primary portion of Abner's life because that's very he meets the kids. His backyard is one of the most and only places of the planet that has fertile soil, and is inhabited by frogs and trees. The second main setting is "New Earth". New Earth is a fictional, better Earth because the Earth we know is contaminated with exotoxins from the atmosphere. The New Earth is extremely futuristic and allows for newer technology use.
Characters
Abner:
Main character of the story. One of the few remaining individuals on Old Earth. He refuses to forsake his home, Old Earth .
Joseph:
Abner's son. He and his family relocated to New Earth. Unlike Abner, Joseph and the rest of his family moved to the New Earth
Rachael:
Abner's granddaughter. Long before the events of the story, she used to love visiting Abner and play with the frogs. As a grown up, she is quite attached to New Earth.
Lin:
One of the teenagers that visited Abner from Albany.
Reviews
The reviews for "The Sounds of Old Earth" are positive overall. Reviewers agree that the story was perfectly sentimental. Though it did not eliminate the prevailing sadness throughout, the ending of the story provided readers with a sense of hope for Abner's happiness and future on New Earth. Carl Anderson of Stainless Steel Droppings remarks that "The Sounds of Old Earth" is about family and connections. The story made him and other reviewers reflect on the importance of upholding one's heritage and belonging to a true home. Abner's refusal to forsake Old Earth enticed reviewers to call this a touching story, and Rachael's gift to him made for the happy ending they sought.
Awards
Sounds of Old Earth has won the Nebula Award for best science fiction short story in 2013 Nebula Awards.
Publication History
Sounds of Old Earth was originally published in Lightspeed Magazine and has been translated and published in XB-1 (Czech), Science Fiction World (Chinese), and Kosmoport (Russian). The short story was also published in the 2015 Nebula Award Showcase.