Fiction: Redemption
What’s wrong with relying on others? To turn to my friends and family? To put my faith in Man? Often I put my time and effort tending to my physical rather than my metaphysical relationships, turning to humans for advice, fellowship, and happiness. What happens in Hell when my God has been ignored? …When my religion has been abandoned? What happens when His place in my life has been filled by other, lesser beings?
My eyes are open, but I do not see. I’m surrounded by darkness…the kind that swallows you up, like you’re in the belly of a beast. Quiet…that’s all I hear. My feet are literally rooted to the ground as if my legs, starting from my calves, have become trees and burrowed their tendril-esque toes below me. Alone. I can feel the presence of no one. All that is around me is empty space. My inner-self mimics my environment…empty.
Off in the distance, I can’t tell how far, I start to hear voices. They are loud enough to hear, but just quiet enough to be unintelligible. Still, this sign of life makes me long for closeness…for companionship. I don’t know how long I have been here, how long I have listened to the whispers in the void. Seconds? Hours? Days? Long enough…long enough to drive me mad. I call out for my friends, my family, but no words come. My mouth does not release a sound. Alone and scared, I cry, letting the tears splash against the ground, watering myself with my sorrows.
I recall an image in my head. It has a hazy quality to it. It is like I remember something that I can’t remember…an idea with a forgotten name. It slowly becomes clearer. I understand. When all is lost and I have been abandoned, there is always one name I can call on. I try with all my might, but all that comes out is a whisper.
“God…”
A tear of light cuts through the darkness. A hand reaches out from the other side. The light that shines on my feet make the rooted growths cower, releasing me from the ground. I grab hold of His hand. I know my faith will always be placed in Him.
