by Jojo Brown
“Do any of these earthly trappings help your essence, your true life? Do they buy you a better life, in the next one? Do they make you more important, in the eyes of the elders?
“No.
“Life is a precious gift, to be embraced, enjoyed. You are all the same. You—we—are all equal. Every one of us came into the world in exactly the same way as the next. You are the result of a miracle. Tiny cells splitting and being nurtured within a woman’s body.
“You all entered this world naked, wet and helpless. Even the wild beasts are born stronger than you are. A newborn jackass stands on his own legs, within minutes of leaving his mother’s womb. So, what makes you better than a jackass?
“The fact that we are the ones who were given ownership over this world. That is the only difference. We are the chosen ones! We are responsible for the rest of the inhabitants of this planet!
“Even though we are truly one of the weakest species on this rock, we were given opposable thumbs and logical minds. We were given knowledge to build on and use to better our lives. We were also given a great burden.
“The future of this planet is in our hands.
“Keep my name in mind… We Are Not Alone… it is more true now than it ever was before.
“The elders have sent us yet another gift. They have given us so much more than this beautiful building to gaze upon and learn from. They have sent us helpers.
“They have been among us for some time now. They are your neighbors, your friends. They teach your children, sell your food and drive your buses.
“They don’t look any different than anyone else. They laugh at your jokes, cry with you when your pain is too much to bear. They bleed the same blood as you when cut; they glisten with the same salty liquid as you when exerting themselves.
“They fall in love, they know loss, they thoroughly enjoy sexual fulfillment. They marry, have children and grow old. They pass from this world to once again soar among the stars.
“The difference between us and them is that they remember all the lessons from throughout history. They are not here to harm us or even change us, too drastically. They are simply here to embrace us, love us and help us.
“Soon, they will make their presence known to all. The world will be amazed, shocked and perhaps afraid when this happens. That, I am afraid is in part my fault.
“My life was meant to be spent in a much different way, than it actually was. I should have spent the last few years, preparing all of you for this day. You should have had the knowledge of these others, long before now. The reasons that this did not happen, are not important.
“What is important is that you know now and you understand that this is a wonderful thing. We are all about to enter a new era, a new way of life.”
From somewhere within the ranks of the crowd, I heard a commotion. I could see people being jostled about, could hear them arguing with someone. Voices were being raised , as were fists. This could have very easily turned into something quite ugly.
“Hold your temper! Let whoever that is, pass by you unharmed and unimpeded. Let them come to me, so that we may speak.” I called out to those involved.
Slowly the crowd began to part and a bent, scared form made its way to the steps on which I stood. I recognized him as soon as I saw him. My heart lurched. How could I have forgotten? As he reached the bottommost step, he collapsed. Running to him, I called to Chris and Adam to help me.
Gently lifting the frail, white-haired head onto my lap, I looked deeply into his rheumy eyes. “I am so sorry, Mr. Davidson. We never meant to hurt you.”
Chris and Adam helped me lift the old janitor and carry him to the platform, gently lowering him to the floor, I pulled my coat off to cushion his head. As I sat there, softly stroking his brow, he lifted his eyes to mine.
“You left me there, in the shed. The whole world started in with shakings and tremblings. There was tools in that shed, you know. Big tools that fell, crashing all around and on me.
“Glass shattered on my head. I had to lie there, where I was put and watch the whole damn shed explode. It was just torn away, like a big twister decided to pick it up and throw it away. I was inside it, but I wasn’t in nothin’ no more. It was gone and I was still there.”
My tears fell freely, as my heart broke for this man. He was part of me, my family and because of my actions; he had been hurt and scared. “I am so sorry, Mr. Davidson. I never meant you to be in any danger. We thought you would be safe in there. We really did. None of us would ever do anything to hurt you.”
“You ain’t payin’ attention, girly girl. Lookit over yonder!”
Lifting a shaking hand, he pointed to where the shed had been. Wiping my eyes, I looked to where he was indicating. To my amazement, there stood a shining building the exact same size as the shed had been. I turned my puzzled gaze back to the trembling man in my embrace.
“They was too tall,” he whispered. “They stood over me, not sayin’ nothin’ I could understand. One of ‘em kinda folded his self up and kneeled down aside me. He looked deep at me, with his big grey eyes. Then he went to touchin’ me.
“I couldn’t get away from him, ‘cause your friends there, had me all wrapped with me own cords. Plus, that big old toolbox had come down on my legs, busted ‘em both. Least, I thought they was busted up good.
“This fella, the one with the eyes, he put his long fingers on my head. He dipped into the blood there and held it up to show his buddies. They all acted like they ain’t never seen a cut ‘afore. They went on talkin’ that foreign babble, like they was tryin’ to decide why I was leakin’.
“Then he turns those eyes on me again, and puts his fingers in my cuts. I mean, I could feel him inside the cuts and it didn’t even hurt none. It was hot. Felt like I was about to go up in flames, but it didn’t never hurt.
“One of his buddies, well he got ahold o’ my legs and squeezed ‘em. The burning inside there was even worse than in my cuts. I thought to myself that these guys was gonna tear me apart and leave me there in the rubble.
“But, then they just stood up and started lookin’ around at the mess from the shed. The third guy had just been standin’ there, watchin’ everything. He comes over and sits down by my head. I can still feel the heat that they put in me and then this third guy throws some kinda cloth over my face.
“At first I was scared, but then I just went to sleep. I didn’t feel tired or nothin’, but I just went to sleep. Then when I opened my eyes, I was sittin’ inside that new shed, good as new myself. I looked and I cant even find a black and blue.
“I don’t know who they were—but wherever they learned medicine and construction must be an amazing land. They told me to give you this.”
He handed me a small package wrapped in white cloth. Getting to his feet, he was no longer shaking. In fact, he now stood straighter and stronger than I had ever seen him. He started down the steps, stopping at the bottom he turned back to me. “I don’t know what kinda party you got goin’ here, but the school board is gonna be pissed about their building. They better not think I am gonna clean this up either.”
I stood there watching the back of his head disappear into the crowd, as he grumbled about finding a new job and trying to explain to his wife why he was so late for dinner. Glancing around at Chris, I saw him shrug his shoulders and flash me one of those amazing smiles I loved so much.
Forty-one
Opening the package, I saw that I was once again in possession of the ‘key’. This time though, I knew what to do with it. Turning my back on the watching crowd, I stepped close to the slick wall of the octagon.
There in front of me, at eye level, was the only mark upon the slick surface. Raising my hand, I ran my fingers across the blemish. “Thank you,” I whispered.
The medallion fit perfectly into the mark. As I pressed my fingers against its back, I could feel the elders’ satisfaction. This was not how they had planned it, this was more my plan than theirs.
They h
ad fully intended to carry out the plan of turning their backs on humankind, taking with them the few who had shown that they were ready. The small contingent of faithful followers, who had spent their lives trying to reach Zandrel; always looking to the utopia, just beyond their reach.
I had spent anxious moments with them, trying to convince them that we were worthy of another chance. If we only had a glimmer of the knowledge, I was sure we could improve.
Upon seeing my distress, the elder of the elders had once again looked into my palm. Hidden once again within his hood, he had searched the smooth surface of my skin there. He peered deeply into my shining eyes, looking directly into my soul. That was when they decided to give us the gift.
As my fingers slipped from the wall, I watched my amulet become part of the structure. It dissolved before my eyes, the way ice does in warm water. It melted into the metal that surrounded it, becoming one with it, re-joining it.
And so, the lessons began.
The surface of the ‘funnel’ came to life. Pictures flashed across the surface, so fast that they blurred together, swirling in a liquid rainbow. The oily film was once again at work. Now I saw it for what it was, not random colors filling a space, instead it was knowledge. Massive amounts of knowledge, merging together in an amazing array.
As the watching eyes devoured this rainbow, sounds filled the air. Not loud or intrusive, but gentle and loving. Every language known to man floated through the cool night air, coming to rest upon the ears that would understand them.
The messages were received worldwide. Everyone, everywhere knew of the re-joining and rejoiced. Those who were at first afraid, soon felt the joy too and joined the celebrations. The news, for days afterwards, showed pictures of people dancing in the streets. Strangers hugged one another, meals shared and doors thrown open to welcome all inside.
Slipping his arm around my waist, Chris had led me down the stairs and into the crowd. We were soon nothing more than a part of the masses. No one would remember our part in what had happened there that day… that was the way I wanted it.
* * * *
That was fifty years ago. I do not know how many of you can remember the time before the re-joining, but I hope a few of you can. The life that we have now is a wondrous thing that was a long time coming. Try to remember the lessons of the past, they are the knowledge.
Without that knowledge, this world could slip again into the ways of war and weapons. The forests have re-grown and everyone is healthier because of it. The ozone has healed its self, except for that one small spot, but it is there as a reminder. Live this life well my family and friends and always remember that we are not alone.
As I sit here writing this, I can feel Chris’ essence around me. The party to celebrate his passing, finally wound down today. Eli gave a marvelous speech about his grandfather’s work in the medical research community.
Finding the flower in the swamp that held the first step to the cure of cancer, was one of his greatest achievements. Chris always did give me the credit for that though, saying that if he hadn’t been picking a bouquet for me, he never would have found it. He always did try to find the most unusual blooms to give me.
I know that the real Chris is still around me and that I will soon be with him again, but I still miss his physical presence. I miss the feel of his breath against my skin and his soft kisses. Mostly, I miss the feeling of security I always felt in his arms.
Sometimes, when I am sitting quietly in the study, I still reach out for his hand. I will be pleased when my turn comes to cross over and I can once again be re-joined with my true love.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
“We all have fantasies, I just write them out!”
Jojo was born in London, England in 1961 and brought to Ontario, Canada at the age of three. She has been an army wife, in Oromocto, New Brunswick, during her first marriage. She’s also been a farm girl all over southern Ontario, a waitress, seamstress, party planner, wedding coordinator and videographer, personal care worker and costume designer. Now happily settled with husband number two and three daughters, she enjoys the small town life. With so much quiet time to devote to her writing, she lets the muses take her where they may.