When I was a boy, I liked to go out to the edge of town. There, I was either inside the town looking out, or outside the town looking in. The town was special then, and my life felt special. That made me feel that some day, I would see something that would make my whole life more special than ever.

One day, when I was sitting at the edge of town from the inside looking out, I saw a unicorn. It was bigger by far than any horse I'd ever seen. Its coat was as white as fresh snow; and best of all, it had a golden horn towering above its head like a sun.

I didn't know what to do. I could hardly think. I just stared at it and wished that I could look at it forever. The unicorn looked at me with eyes of fire. I thought those eyes would burn me up, but they were as comforting as a fire in the fireplace on a cold night.

Then I thought how wonderful it would be if I could come to school riding on the unicorn. Everybody would look up to me then. I would be the most popular child in school. So I reached out to the unicorn, hoping that I could make it stay with me and be mine forever. But before I could touch it, its eyes flashed angrily at me, and in less than a second it was gone.

From that day on, I felt that seeing the unicorn again was more important than anything else in the world. I did not talk about it. Partly that was because I doubted anyone would believe me, but partly it was because of the way the unicorn had left me. When it disappeared, it gave me the feeling that I had done something wrong. Otherwise, it would have stayed. I didn't want other people to know I wasn't as good as I wanted to be or as good as I tried to make them think I was.

I drew pictures of the unicorn all the time. At least I tried to. I was never satisfied with my drawings, because none of them looked like the unicorn I had seen. If anybody else happened to see any of my drawings, I let them think I was using my imagination. That way they wouldn't know I was trying to draw something real, and just couldn't do it. I even got to do a report on unicorns for science class by telling my teacher it was a report on what unicorns would be like if they existed. My teacher thought it was a good exercise in thinking.

All this time, on my way to school and on the way home, on the way to a friend's house, or on the to the store and back, I was looking for the unicorn. But I was too busy drawing pictures and making reports to go back to the edge of town and sit there.

It wasn't long before I wanted to read all the books about unicorns that I could find. There were only two or three books in the bookstore, so one day I asked my mother to take me to the library. There I found five books on unicorns. One of them looked like it was over a hundred years old. Once I had read these books, I would know everything there was to know about unicorns. Not only would I know if some unicorns had different manes or hooves different from other unicorns, I also would know when unicorns were good luck and when they weren't.

I rushed to the check-out counter with the books and there was the librarian waiting for me, looking like a dragon ready to pounce on any boy who wanted to check out books on unicorns. When I placed the books down in front of her she gave me a look that made me feel like a thief.

"So you want to know all about unicorns, do you?" she asked me sharply.

"Yes," I replied.

Her sharp look made me expect a lecture on the total uselessness of unicorns.

"Hmpf!" grunted the librarian. "Have you ever thought of getting to know a unicorn?"

"Yes!" I cried, amazed that she might understand my predicament in life.

"Then why don't you do it?"

"I - I just wish I could - I mean - I try - and -" I stammered.

"Well," said the librarian, "there's trying and there's trials, and we need both."

Seeing that the crabby librarian was really all sympathy for me, I poured out my story to her in one long breath. When I had finished, I stood before the desk hanging my head while I waited for her to give me a guilty verdict.

"You are a silly boy," said the librarian.

"I know," I replied. "But what am I doing wrong?"
 

"Is the world round?" she asked me.

"As - far as I know," I replied. But I wasn't feeling certain about anything just then.

"I am not talking about the solar system!" snapped the librarian. "You don't understand at all. If the world is round, why don't you wait?"

"Because - I'll never catch up with the unicorn," I answered. "I'll have to find out where to look and then-"

"In a round world?" exploded the librarian. "What were you doing when you saw the unicorn before?"

"Nothing - except - "

"Except what?"

"I - I was just sitting inside the town looking out."

"And what were you doing the rest of the time?"

"Nothing much: just going to movies, doing homework, washing dishes, and playing with friends."

"And what if the unicorn should travel around the world?" the librarian asked me.

So, thanks to the librarian, I went back to my favorite place at the edge of town, sometimes looking out, sometimes looking in. During some of my visits I read the books on unicorns I had checked out. Other times I drew pictures of them. On other days, I just sat and waited and hoped.

I still don't know if I was happy or sad during those days. Even when I cried because the unicorn hadn't come back, I thought I was happier just thinking about it and hoping it would come, than I would have been if I hadn't thought about it and hoped for it. Many times I just felt empty. That wasn't as bad as having a boring assignment from school or getting punished for doing something wrong, but it wasn't as good as getting what I really wanted. No matter what I had, even when I had pictures and books about unicorns, as long as I could not hear a unicorn's hoofbeat when I put my ear to the ground, I had nothing really worth while.

During these empty days, I started to pass the time by thinking of myself as a unicorn. I know that was foolish, but I was desperate. I would think about how strong a unicorn's back was, and how it could carry people who needed a ride. Then, one day, on my way home from school, I came across a little girl who had fallen on the sidewalk and scraped her knee while. I picked her up and carried her to her home where her mother could take care of her. At first, I almost fell under the weight, but the more I thought about the unicorn, the easier it was for me to carry the girl, no matter how heavy she was.

Later, a boy in my class at school got sick and I went to visit him. I pretended that I had a horn like the unicorn, a horn shining brightly enough to cheer up other people. I just talked and played games with my sick friend, but by the time I left, he was happier for my visit, and I felt happier too.

But still, I had nothing for myself. It had been so long since I had seen the unicorn, I could not picture it in my mind anymore. I began to wonder if I hadn't been dreaming when I thought I saw a unicorn. If it wasn't for the librarian who told me the unicorn was just going around the world, I would have given up. Besides, I couldn't make myself happy by staying away from the edge of town. I wanted to see the unicorn again so badly, that it was no help to pretend that I didn't believe in the unicorn. By this time, more and more people knew I was spending a lot of time doing nothing. I didn't let them bother me much. Nothing they could say or do could make me any more miserable than I was already. The funny thing is, although a lot of people made fun of me, they made friends with me more than they used to.

So I sat. Sometimes I read from a book. Sometimes I tried thinking. Sometimes I didn't even think. All the time I was wishing and hoping. I don't know what I was doing the day I felt myself leaning against something soft, but firm, like a post. I looked up. As far as I could see, everything was white, except, high above me was the shining horn and the unicorn's eyes blazing at me.