The Christmas Permanent
The sun rose, again. The day started like every other. And, his mind going through the motions. Blinders on and he saw only one world. Like a plow horse, he followed the pull of the reins. Except his reins were tied to the same old day. Never to the left, never to the right. Just straight ahead. Friends and family, he knew not the terms. They knew not him, either. Today, the same day. Coffee tasted the same as the day before. No urge to try something new. The waitress bothered not to ask what he wanted today. Always the same. Ham and scrambled eggs. Pepper, no salt. No smiles, only casual conversation for those passing by. This day, "Merry Christmas." Meant nothing to him. Just another day. No thoughts of the gate or beyond Above Cognitive nor even God.
The shock on his face. The dragging chair made such a sound. Down sat this this beautiful woman. This fine lady. Was the inevitable finding him? "Hi, The Christmas Permanent Man. Been watching you for a long time. Same dull routine every day. Love it. Envy you," she said. He was neither mad nor angry. As he sipped his coffee, "I have a job to do. May I ask what you want." Quite bluntly she said, "You!" Every Christmas for so many years, the same little diner, the same little chair, only the waitresses changed here and there. He became known as The Christmas Permanent Man. Unchanging to life or time. Neither, meant anything to him. He did was he had to do; what was expected of him. Day after day. "I am an Angel," she said, "I have been sent down to Earth to teach you there is more to life than breathing. There is fun and happiness." "Why do you bother with such things with me? I do not want more or less. Just what is mine," he clearly stated, "I don't want to be silly; I don't want the cheap thrills, I don't want any thrills at all." A tear ran down his face. The first ever seen over the decades people knew him. She smiled. She struck oil. "I will show you the inevitable if you change. Show you the permanent if you remain the same." He shrugged his shoulders, "Who really cares?" The tears were forming on her eyes. She remembered Him, the Lord, touching her on her shoulders once and she knew He cared. She felt His spirit and His truth, even more. "Touch my hands. Past, present, and future ours. Above Cognitive waits." The journey begun and God winked.
The bird on the ground. No memory of the finger pulling the firearm. He watched as it fell. Today, he was feeling its heart; its pain the whole way down. No thoughts of God or anything before. He saw the life of the bird as it struggled for breath. Its hunger waiting for a worm. The nest warm as was her sisters and brothers. Soon, flying the skies with the freedom of the winds. Food, shelter always a concern. Times did allow for the frolicking and playing with her sisters and brothers and others. That one time, the eagle screaming down upon her. Up, down, all around, here, there, finally, in a cloud losing the hungry predator. The minutes, maybe, the hours, catching its breath under the hanging rock. The entire time, he felt it all. He was the bird. He saw the sights; touched the air; the feathers of the other birds; the hunger, rain falling down; sitting on her eggs and nest. All he felt and more. Feeling the bullet pierce her chest ripped his heart. How could he? Were her eggs hatched? Would her chicks die. The coming down and hitting the ground. Her burial plot. His days of cheap thrills and the lack of more drove him to The Christmas Permanent. In a coughing of her voice, the Angel felt all that he did. And all the times in his memories that drove him to his nickname. She started to understand him. But fought back. Not allowed. The journey, let's continue to the gate and Above Cognitive and one day God, as He winked.
"van Gogh, was your art worth the price you paid never to see your fame?" the Angel said, "None ever understood the man. Now, your future." A little fear here. Who wants to gamble on what is to come when it is your life? "No, please, not. I am satisfied with my life. I seek not more or less for all that I have done." "Forgiveness is the Lord's way," she replied. He sensed something touched her heart, as it did his. He said back, "If it has to be done." The day started like every other day. The diner the same. The Christmas Permanent Man whispered behind his back. For years this went on. Until Christmas Day, he woke no more. He didn't cry nor weep. He didn't feel sad. He didn't feel at all. He walked with his head up to the Pearly Gates. She perceived she failed. An Angel never fails, until now. He listened for his name. It never came. In a soundless voice in his heart, he heard, "Go to hell." His bad outweighed his good. He started his walk down when he heard. "Go to hell! What do you mean? The man is good. Did you not feel his pain, his remorse, his sorrow?" Angels never mad. She was. She looked at him straight in the eyes with flames. "Why? aren't you mad?" she said. "I do not want more or less. Just what is mine," he returned. The words from her mouth spoke by someone else, "I am yours. I am your fun and happiness." They arose from the table and the whispers heard, "The Christmas Permanent Couple. What a fun and happy couple." The years since that first day which neither remembered. They passed the gate of Above Cognitive that day after years before beginning their journeys to the gate separate as planned. As One, they continued the journey with life after the gate. And God willing, many more years before standing in front of Him. "The Christmas Permanent Plan worked. God never fails. Merry Christmas!"