The story of i and number 7.

On a beautiful morning, you can see a group of numbers walking together on the prairie. They are going to a place where numbers learn about their place. You see 1 and 2 marching proudly in the front. Next you see 3 lagging a little bit behind, with 4 keep poking its back to make it march faster. 5 keeps joking with 6, while 6 seems to be keep looking at 7. Behind them there’s 8. 8 is the bigger brother of 3, you can see their similarity in their round behind. And 9 the tallest of them all walk at the back.

At the school they learn how to relate with each other. 5 added with 4 to become 9, 3 multiplied with 2 to become six, and so on. And once in a while they create a major collaboration, creating something amazing, like the infinite π.

Number is not the only thing who attend this school. You can see symbol like ε, δ and π sitting at the front. And at the back you can see the weird one, like 0 that is there but not there, and of course our own little i.

The little i seems out of place. He didn't come marching with other numbers. He never talks with 0. And he can only watch as other number work together, collaborating. At the worst time he’s even get laughed by the others for being not a real number, imaginary. Yes, everyone laugh at him, all of them, except for 7.

7 always protect i every time this happens. And as time passes, 7 grew fond of becoming the little i guardian. Taking care of him. Walking behind and use his long top to cover little i from rain & the sun.

Nurtured by 7, the little i finally found his confidence. He’s start participating, creating the most difficult formulas. Showing what he can do, impressing the others doing thing that only imaginary number can do. And all of this, he knows it’s all because of 7.

So one day he ask 7. “7, why are you so nice to me? Other numbers just ignored me and laugh at me because i’m not real.”

7 thinks for a moment, formulating his answer. “Well little i, a while ago i know another number that doesn't fit here just like you”, said 7. “Because he’s so negative other numbers doesn't like to work with him. It affect them too much, if they interact with him, they become negative too”, 7 explained. “That number is -1".

1 tries hard to blend in, maybe too hard. The other numbers get annoyed, so they force him to walk further back as we march. I couldn’t stand it. So one day, as we march, I decided I must do something. So I transform my self to something else, turn my top to the right instead of left. Took him under me & give him my protection.

And not knowing what about to happen, turns out my transformation also change him. I see a bright smile across his face and just after he said thank you, thank you. He dissapears. Because the square root of -1 doesn’t exist in this world.

I’m back becoming 7 again, but i lost some of my memory for a while. And thing changed after that. People starting to realize that’s a new number exist, that you exist.

I didn't recognize you right away because of my memory loss. But you are the one at the other side of that equation. A new number with lots of wonderful potential. So i took care of you like I took care of -1. Because I know, that you belong with us. And I don’t want to see anyone disappear, ever again.

— End —

Twitter 25 Juni 2014