by Manu Amun
Chapter 1
Meditating with my father always we a sense of peace for me. We would take out our trusty folding chairs with the comfortable cushion, placing the chairs seven feet apart from each other with my brother Bilal, my sister Nyema, and mother at an equal distance forming a five pointed star. It was these moments when I felt safe from the judgments of the world around us. I knew that other families thought we were weird but our deeds exceeded our spirituality in their eyes where our parents were pillars of the community working on social issues for those left behind by government laws and we were the top students in our class with the highest marks across board.
As the oldest I took it on myself to lead my brother and sister in this direction my parents had guided us to like a lighthouse in a torrential storm. My father had told me that their development would be determined by how I gravitated to his teachings. My father and I had our share of battles between the two of us and there were moments where we would not talk for days with our stubbornness being identical, I blame genetics. Eventually, we were able to see eye to eye and I followed his guidance and I grew exponentially and it was threw the witnessing of that growth that my siblings got on board.
Now we were a five made one like a fist ready to punch a hole in whoever stood in the way of what we desired which was simple, to uplift those around us and show them how to improve their day to day life through these basic principles of studying oneself in conjunction with the world and universe that they were living in. it was through these studies that we had been able to achieve the success we had in all facets of our life.
For myself I was happy with excelling in academics, for Bilal this translated to his athletics where his aptitude for studying game film along with his perfecting of his instincts made him a star in any sport he played, for Nyema it was her intuition where she was able foresee problems and solutions before they presented themselves in real time.
I was just happy to see all of us become the people that my parents envisioned when we were babies. Now in our teenage years where I was 17, Bilal 16, and Nyema 15 what is known in society as the most difficult years was becoming a breeze for my parents. Unfortunately this peace of mind that we shared would be dramatically interrupted by forces that Nyema could not even see coming.
10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1…Happy New Year. Our parents kissed and toasted their glasses with their closest friends to bring in the new year of 2013.
“To imagine, people thought the world was going to end” my father said.
But he knew all too well that was not the case. My father had dedicated himself to us and making us a stronger unit as a result. My parents were intellectuals but always felt the need to act. They had this utopian idea of what should be based on what once was in the past before the fall of ancient civilizations of days long ago. Anyone who came into contact with my father immediately viewed him as eccentric before meeting my mother who calmed down his passions and gave it direction to the betterment of the family. Where he was able to be chameleon and the need to educate everyone who came into his path decreased as he understood that everyone was not ready to eat the food he wanted to serve them.
With champagne pouring for our parents they danced the night away to a mixture of music that my parents had to agree to before playing as their musical inklings were significantly different. Where my father loved smooth grooves of the 1970s-90s, my mother loved everything that had been recorded. To be honest I cannot remember a song she did not like. Nevertheless, they danced some slow dancing some club music; I forgot at times that they were as old as they were because something about them seemed to not age like they were in college and never grew up.
“I feel rejuvenated for the new year” My father said.
“Yes anything will be better than the drama of last year, but stop stepping on feet” my mother replied.
“I am just trying to get leveled with you; there must be slant in this floor. I feel shorter than usual.”
“That is because you are short my dear.” She said to him laughing pulling him closer to her.
“Mom, I am going to need something a little stronger than this sparkling cider if I am going to be subjected to this.” Bilal said.
“How do you think you got here? My father asked which immediately made my stomach turn.
“Alright guys I think that is our cue to leave.” I said.
Our parents’ behavior aside the night was great; I enjoyed my family playing with my younger siblings Bilal and Nyema.
Bilal was an interesting fellow, my father referred to him as the sweet one because Bilal was gentle but had a confidence about him that was only matched by our sister. My sister Nyema, one word can describe her DIVA! She felt like she walked on water, and my father refused to tell her anything different. I do not think her feet touched the floor until she was almost three years of age. But we all got along wonderfully we were born in consecutive years, again showing the passion and love shared by my parents I guess. The thought of it disgusted me yet I longed for a love they had where each continued to work to understand the other better in order for the family as a unit to be strong being that they were the foundation they made sure that the relationship between them first and foremost was solid. The three of us are remarkably close. We did everything together, potty trained, started school, and competed against each other with the wide knowledge base given to us by our family.
We had what my father called the Akashic Records; it was our own personal library that rivaled the public one down the street. We had both printed and digital books on every subject imaginable. “Science and math are the keys better yet the language of the universe” my mother would tell us daily. So we studied and I mean studied hard. But it was not a chore it was enjoyable because we knew that with these tools we will make a difference one day. I know for sure that neither one of us had any idea what that contribution was but we knew it was destined. I mean why else would our parents be such crack pots?
So we studied every day and on the New Year's Eve, the reason for those studies became as apparent the rising of the morning sun. We knew that the winter solstice would cause a great shift. Our solar system was going to be in the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. The thought was that something would change. I think it was us being to use to everything happening so fast that we thought the change would be instant. I was hoping to get wings. To be able to just lift off and go whenever I wanted, perhaps I read too many comics and watched too much television. Things did not change at all as we moved to the new calendar year, well nothing that was obvious.
We all began to notice little things. One of us would think of someone and they would call, we would share thoughts, finish each other sentences but not on purpose. It was weird. We heard of this happening before but we never paid any attention to it, it was some stuff my dad would talk about.
On the 11th of January everything changed, the newly re-elected president made an address to the country that would change things forever. Martial law was enacted upon the country. This came as a shock to us. "Are you watching this" Bilal and Nyema said simultaneously. Our mouths almost hit the floor as we watched the address of the television.
I don’t not remember what he said verbatim but the gist of it was:
"Citizens of the United States of America, we are under attack. There are several home grown terrorist cells across the country that have been developing for the past couple of decades. We are aware of their activities through agents we had working within these organizations. The problem we have faced is that there has been no leadership that we could identify. This group comes in all shades and color but our intelligence tells us that the Martial Law will smoke them out. We will also be sending representatives from the United Nations to homes to collect registered firearms. Anyone not in compliance with these measures will be viewed as an enemy of the state and sent to camps under the supervision of the Federal Emergency Management Agency." It was all surreal like a bad dream that I could not wake up from
.
Dad has always thought the government would finally show their hand, I guess the I told you so is coming" Nyema said.
"That’s sounds about right but I have not seen him in a while where is he? It is not like him to miss moments in history such as these" Bilal asked.
That was good question I thought, as a matter of fact where are either of our parents?
A loud crash sounding like a millions car crashing into a guardrail was heard from the basement and like the curious kids we were we went and started to go check.