The Portal in the Park

by Cricket Casey

  Chapter 9. Future Flash

  The holographic screen flickers off and back on again. The scene is the same, except that the two brothers are sitting at the computer together. This time when Joey wants a turn with the mouse, Scott invites him to sit in his chair, and he thinks of an easy computer game they can play together.

  “Want to try this?” Scott says as he leans over and shows Joey the new game. Joey is surprised and happily agrees. Scott tells him to move over so he can show him how to play the game.

  Clearly, Scott is in control of his feelings and the situation has changed. They are having fun, and Joey is thrilled that Scott is taking the time to play with him.

  Scott is impressed by this look into the future. “That’s amazing! How did it happen?”

  Relato, chuckling at Scott’s reaction, indicates the screen and says, “A great playwright named Eugene O’Neill once said, ‘The past is the present and the future too.’ What you do determines who you are and what will happen. When you call up friendliness instead of selfishness and share your knowledge with Joey that is what can happen. You make Joey happy with your generous offer to teach him the new game. This is called cooperation.” He smiles with approval when he sees understanding in Scott’s expression.

  “You don’t push him away or shut him out. You use self-control and friendliness. Emotions, like viruses, tend to replicate themselves. Everyone knows anger is contagious, but did you know that happiness is contagious, too? Which feeling would you rather catch? Which feeling would you like to spread? Rage or happiness? The choice is yours, Scott.” With a wave of his scepter the holographic TV vanished.

  Scott smiled up at Relato, thrilled that he was finally grasping the concept. “What you are saying is that we both feel better, and we stay friends and have fun instead of being enemies,” he said excitedly. “When I’m in control of myself and manage the situation, anger doesn’t explode into rage.”

  Relato was pleased. “Precisely! We’re all in this game together, the game of life, and we need each other to make it work smoothly.”

  “I’m all for having fun,” Scott said eagerly, “but about the Viroids – is there any way I can protect myself from them?”

  “Certainly!” exclaimed Relato as he took Scott’s hand. “When you arrived here did you notice the beautiful fountain? And did you read the inscription on this building?”

  “Yes,” said Scott, as he was guided by Relato, “I did see the fountain with the word ‘VERITAS’ carved in front, and water all the colors of the rainbow spraying high into the air! And I saw the words ‘Inner National Bank of Worth’ carved into the stone over the doors of this building. But what does it all mean, Relato?”

  “That fountain is The Fountain of Truth. ‘Veritas’ means truth in Latin. The multicolored magical waters radiate positive energy. This building is my domain. Come with me.”

  They walked down a long corridor and into an enormous room that looked like a bank. Many of the inhabitants of Cortex were standing in lines leading up to windows. At each window was a penguin-like creature, resplendent in top hat and bow tie, busily tallying up deposit and withdrawal slips. The floor was covered with iridescent confetti, reminiscent of the stock exchange.

  Scott was astonished and confused. “What is happening in this lively place?”

  “This is our Inner National Bank where your True Net Worth is determined.” Relato gestured for Scott to precede him to a table where he picked up a slip of paper called a “True Net Worth Transaction Sheet.”

  “How do I calculate my True Net Worth?” Scott puzzled.

  “It is very simple,” Relato explained in a slow, deliberate manner to make sure Scott understood. “For every positive action you set in motion, or motivate, you mark a plus one cent deposit in your account, and for every negative reaction you spark, you mark a minus one chip withdrawal.”

  Scott was very interested and said, “How do I keep track of these deposits and withdrawals?”

  “You need to keep a journal of your cents and chips daily,” Relato explained. “As your money – cents – grows, you grow in maturity – sense. They get totaled at the bank to provide you with your True Net Worth in your Growth Fund. That’s what the tellers are doing so briskly behind the counters.”

  “Amazing! How can I start?” Scott inquired earnestly.

  “You simply take this to the window, and the teller will show you how to complete it,” Relato explained as he handed him a transaction sheet.

  Scott went up to a window and filled the slip out for that day, checking his positive deposits and negative withdrawals. He came up a little short (more chips than cents), because he had more negatives than positives for the day, and said, “I think I need more work on my deposits,” as he put some sheets in his pocket to work on later.

  “You can make a list of those reactions giving you the most trouble and be ready to neutralize them. If you are aware of them you have already canceled most of their power,” Relato assured him with a pat on the back. “In the battle you saw, Viroids were not eliminated, they were only stopped. You cannot eradicate them forever but you can prevent them from affecting your life! Then you can teach Joey how to do it.”

  “Really?” Scott smiled and wrote a plus one share on the slip, “Teaching is positive, and then he wouldn’t bug me so much.”

  “Precisely!” Relato nodded in agreement. “Which Viroid would you like to eliminate the most?”

  “Angroid is my worst enemy. He hurt me the most,” Scott said with conviction. “Angroid likes to spoil pleasure,” Relato agreed, “and he ruins many friendships. What would you say is the opposite of anger?”

  Scott smiled and blurted out, “Isn’t it friendliness?”

  “Absolutely!” replied Relato appreciatively, giving Scott two thumbs up. “Joey looks up to you as his older brother. He is eager for your friendship. You’re his role model. He can learn this self-control trick from you. Just think – what is the opposite of fear?”

  “Isn’t it courage?” Scott declared, proud of his knowledge.

  “Yes,” Relato agreed. “Some folks are afraid of the dark, and need a little light in the bedroom at night. They must say, ‘I am not afraid of the dark; the dark can’t hurt anyone.’ Or another example would be, ‘I am not afraid of thunder; the noise can’t hurt anyone.’ This is how we change our behavior. We substitute good for bad. Fear is an imaginary evil. As a great American president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, once said, ‘The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.’ It is also an excellent idea never to say anything mean.”

  “I know.” Scott was looking down at his feet, feeling embarrassed. “I really feel wicked after I say horrible things.”

  “Right, Scott, remember when you were so angry you said you hated everyone, even your mom and Joey?”

  Scott hung his head, “I didn’t really mean it.”

  “Perhaps not,” Relato swirled his scepter creating a flicker of light that appeared and disappeared, “but it stays as negative energy until you cancel it out. Negatives have to be crossed off the record in the Book of Life, and the sooner, the better – but better late than never. It can work even years later, like forgiveness.”

  “What should I do?” Scott rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders in frustration. “I don’t really hate Joey; he just drives me nuts.”

  “There you go again!” Relato raised his right hand firmly to signify “stop” and gently placed his left hand on Scott’s shoulder as he explained. “No one ever drives you nuts, you allow it to happen. Think – that’s what you should do – think! You are responsible for your own thoughts and actions.”

  Relato led Scott to a chair. “Let me tell you a story about a Mind/Bodybuilder in one of my lectures. This vivacious youngster stood up in the middle of class and blurted out his thoughts on ‘thoughts.’”

  Relato mimicked the boy as he told the story. “The boy placed his hands on his temples and then threw his hand down as if to
pitch a ball at his feet while announcing to the class, ‘If I can think it, then I can sink it. I call these bad thoughts – my STINK’N THINK’N.’”

  Scott burst out laughing. “I would love to go to one of your classes. That boy sounds really smart.”

  “Well, maybe that can be arranged,” Relato winked. “That is one of my favorite stories about teaching our youth who become pretty confident and creative with their wisdom, I might add. I can see it happening to you already.”

  “I wish I could sink it, and get rid of my STINK’N THINK’N,” Scott sighed longingly.

  “You must learn to live consciously.” Relato exclaimed. “You saw how different things were in ‘Future Flash’ when you were nice to Joey and shared your computer. You made him your friend, not your enemy.”

  “Yes, but how do I do that all the time?” Scott shrugged his shoulders, feeling perplexed.

  “You do it one incident at a time by being alert and aware, and using your conscience.”

  “I don’t get it.” Scott leaned forward in his chair, put his head in his hands in deep thought, and replied helplessly, “What is my conscience?”

  Relato reached his hand out and gently patted Scott on the head. “Your conscience is your brain’s inner monitor of what is right and what is wrong. And it’s always urging you to do the right thing. Do you think that the next time Joey starts to bother you that you could do what you did on the path that was strewn with glass?”

  “What do you mean?” Scott’s brain was spinning with all these new concepts as he straightened out of his slumping posture to look up at Relato.

  “Do you think you could step back and think about what will happen if you answer him with a nasty remark? You would not step on the broken glass, but would choose to go around it, taking the path that would not hurt you.”

  “I guess so,” he hesitantly agreed, though still puzzled.

  “What do you think you should do to avoid a fight?”

  Scott’s face lit up. “I know! I’ll tell him a joke to get him to laugh, and then ask him to play a game. Is that the kind of stuff you mean?”

  “Precisely!” Relato exclaimed, raising his scepter as a sign of victory, delighted that Scott was finally grasping the principles. “That sounds like a step in the right direction. If you learn to control your temper you’ll feel better about yourself. And if you help others to control their tempers, they will feel better about themselves. You will be developing positive attitudes and making friends instead of enemies.”

  “That sounds easy,” Scott agreed, “but I think it will be hard to do.”

  “Just try the friendly, cooperative approach with Joey the next time, and you will find with each successful episode it will get easier to do. Soon you will look back and wonder why you two didn’t get along before. If you become more aware of what’s going on around you, then your deposits into the Inner National Bank of Worth will far outnumber the withdrawals sending your Growth Fund off the charts.”

  Scott stood up, holding a withdrawal slip, and ripped it up saying, “No more STINK’N THINK’N!” He was having so much fun that he laughed and joined in as Relato sang …

  When I Laugh

  Performed by Grandmaster Melle Mel

  (Visit www.theportalinthepark.com for audio)

  When I laugh, it makes me happy even if I were sad ‒ when I laugh.

  If I was brutal, laughing makes me feel glad ‒ when I laugh.

  It helps me realize that nothing’s so bad ‒ when I laugh.

  Now everybody get closer maybe you’ll see alright,

  And smile because everything will be alright,

  And laugh when you work or play,

  And remember tomorrow you can finish what you started today.

  And even though things don’t work out,

  Keep a positive mind, that’s what happiness is all about,

  Because today what didn’t work out,

  Is something tomorrow, we’ll sit around and laugh about.

  When I laugh ‒ it makes me happy even if I were sad ‒ when I laugh.

  If I was brutal, laughing makes me feel glad ‒ when I laugh.

  It helps me realize that nothing’s so bad ‒ when I laugh.

  And let me tell ya, I know your pain; I feel your grief,

  But come on y’all give me a smile, let me see those teeth.

  Things are never are as bad as they seem.

  Greet life and treat life like it’s a bowl of ice cream;

  You take it one scoop at a time.

  Learn from your mistakes, find something new to do with your mind.

  Take your time, don’t act fast.

  And whenever I’m lost, I get on the right Path ‒ when I laugh.

  I feel somethin’ comin’ over me,

  A good something all over me ‒ when I laugh.

  All my friends are close to me,

  And that’s how it’s supposed to be ‒ when I laugh.

  I start feelin’ real good inside,

  Like everything’s gonna be alright ‒ when I laugh.

  Put your hands up, put your hands up.

  Come on.

  Everything’s gonna be alright.

  Everything, everything’s gonna be alright.

  Everything, everything’s gonna be alright.

  When I laugh. Oh yeah.

  Smile for me, baby.