Chapter Seven: When All Is Lost

Self Denial was very pleased with himself for his accomplishment on earth, and he knew that Annus would be pleased with him. When he walked into the chamber he saw his leader, standing in the dark room alone. To his surprise, Annus was speaking. "I thought I had beaten you when Eve persuaded Adam to eat the fruit, but in the end it was all a part of your plan," he whispered. "Then I thought I had beaten you when I persuaded kings of Israel to turn against you, but it was all a part of your plan. I tried to kill your people, but you chose Esther to save them. I tried to kill your Son, but you raised Him. This time, I will succeed. I will steal your servant from you, and you will never get her back." As Annus spoke his voice rose in pitch and soon he was yelling. Self Denial cowered in fear and inadvertently let out a sound. Annus turned and saw him there, and quickly recovered himself to ask of news.

"Master, I have handed Grace over to Pride. His is following her like a shadow and I know that she will give in. She is so weak," said Self Denial. Annus let out a haughty laugh and slapped his "good servant" on the back with approval. Self Denial winced at the pain, but tried not to show it. Just then Pride came running in, squealing like a beaten dog. "I have seen light!" he screamed. "The Master has sent messengers to Grace, and they shine with His power." "You fool!" yelled Annus. "You must never run from the light!" but he was pacing, obviously shaken. "What can we do?" said Pride, still cowering in fear. "Get away from me," shouted Annus. "Go back where you belong! I have given you a job do. It would be better for you to die than to fail. If you fail I will kill you myself." But Pride, who was more fearful of light than of Annus, did not move. Annus was fearful himself, and so decided to change his mind. "We will call a council," he said. "Summon everyone."

Within an hour all the creatures of darkness had gathered. Despite the whispers that filled the auditorium there was an aura of fear and stillness. Loneliness, the one chosen to lead this mission, stood to speak. "My brothers, the Maker has chosen to fight us." Silence reigned. "We will send a new and stronger warrior to combat these forces of light. I call upon Doubt for our next mission." With that one of the most powerful creatures in heaven or on earth stood. The creatures of darkness turned their heads as one to see him as he walked toward Loneliness. Doubt was not at all like Loneliness. He had no flowing black cape or sinister expression. Instead, he was as transparent as a shadow, with a walk like that of a person creeping on all fours, with hands not quite touching the ground. Pride, fearful as he was, was summoned to go with him. Annus’ followers were not allowed to come home without completing their mission. If Pride returned again it would mean certain death. If he failed with Grace it would mean certain death. He had no choice.

As Grace walked through the housing development in Chicago she was thinking of her choices. Suddenly, she looked up to see a woman standing there before her. It was early morning and the woman was retrieving her newspaper. The woman looked up and spoke. "Can I help you?" she asked. Grace started to answer, but then remembered that she could not be seen. She turned to see who the woman was talking to, but there was no one. Nervously Grace stuttered, "D-do you live here?" The woman looked confused. "Of course I do," she said, still in her bathrobe and slippers. The woman was like no human Grace had ever seen. She had long brown hair and gorgeous green eyes, and her slender figure could be seen even with her bathrobe on. Grace had never seen such a magnificent work of art. "He really is an artist," she thought of the Maker. She quickly snapped herself out of her reverie and looked down at her hand. She herself was now in a human body. She gasped as she saw the fingers and toes and hair of a human. Grace felt more constricted with every minute, and as she felt the flesh tightening around her she cried out. "Help me!" she said. "I’m trapped!" The startled woman ran back into her house and called her husband. "This girl needs help," she said. Grace let out one more cry of pain, then fell to the ground unconscious. She would soon begin to see the consequences of her choices at a whole new level.

Copyright © 2005 by Jamie Madera. Reproduction is forbidden without permission. Contact me at jamielynne87@yahoo.com.

Friendship

Friendship is life. It is the air I breathe and the water I drink. Friends are the people in your life that get you through the tough times and laugh with you when you are acting crazy together. They've got your back and you've got thiers. Friendship is reliable, trustworty, and honorable. It makes you want to lay down your life for a person's smallest need and step up with courage to the mightiest challenge. Friendship is life, and that is what it means to me.

Carnegie Hall

If you are a musician then you understand the dream of performing in Carnegie Hall. As a classical musician I have always known that if you make it to Carnegie Hall, you've made it to the top. This is a dream that never dies, no matter how impossible it may seem and no matter how wonderful and talented you must be to perform there, hope will always remain. When I visited New York City in May I had the opportunity to go to Carnegie Hall, and while looking around the lobby I discovered that there was a concert that Sunday (it was Friday) that I could go to. I bought tickets and made arrangements for my Aunt to take me there, but I don't think the reality really set in. The day of the concert, as I walked into the lobby and handed my ticket to the usher, I realized "I'm going to a concert in Carnegie Hall!" I was so ecstatic and so overjoyed, but those feelings were nothing compared to what I felt when I walked through the doorway and into the concert hall. I held back my tears as I thought "I am standing in Carnegie Hall. How many others have dreamed of being here, and I finally made it! I may not be on stage yet, but I am three feet away and even that is a dream come true." I was so blessed to have this opportunity and I thank God for the encouragement He brought later in the week as I was given a chance to meet the concert master (the very best violinist) of the New York Philharmonic. I told him that he had my dream job. "Well, I won't be there forever," he said. I asked him for his autograph and this is what he wrote: "To Jamie, the dreamer. Hope they come true! - Glen Dicterow" For now I keep on dreaming, as does every musician, and I thank God that He has given me a purpose, a hope, and maybe even a place on stage at Carnegie Hall.

Chapter Six: The Familiar Street

Grace and Self Denial soon arrived at a place that seemed so dark and eerie that all would avoid it. "Why are we here?" said Grace. There came no answer. She thought she saw Self Denial through the shadows, but his form was barely visible because of the quickly encroaching darkness of night. "Well, well, well. Who do we have here?" sneered Pride. Grace jumped at a voice that was not familiar. "Who are you? What have you done with my friend." "Your friend has left you all alone," he said in a pitying voice. "You can survive without him, without anyone. He has deserted you here because he knows that you need depend on no one." It was then that the hideous form stepped out of the shadows, exposing his face to Grace. She was not startled, though, because she had been so influenced by Self Denial that instead of seeing what was really there she saw what she wanted to see. She actually thought him beautiful because of the "white glowing robes and the angelic face," as she later remembered. This was yet another sign of her increasingly gray complexion. And as she followed Pride through the shadowy streets of downtown Chicago her skin took on another, darker hue. Pride grinned at the success of his companions and secretly determined to out do them all. Suddenly, Grace realized that she was standing in the very same place where she had met Loneliness what seemed like ages ago. A chill crept up her spine as she remembered that night, but the advice and ideas of her new companions had convinced her that her actions that night no longer mattered, and she chose to continue to follow Pride through the darkness. As the two disappeared into the night Self Denial made his way back to headquarters. "Annus will be pleased, very pleased," he whispered to himself.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Faith, Hope and Love began their journey on Earth in Chicago, the very city where Pride was beginning to overtake their dear friend Grace. As they walked the streets, unseen by men, their senses were heightened. If not for their loving Maker, the presence of evil would have been unbearable. Sin existed in all capacities, from the brothels, bars, and night life to the quiet citizen full of bitterness and anger. The three had discussed possibilities and decided that their best bet was not to directly confront Grace, because she had already put up a wall of defense. Instead, they chose to show her things that might cause her to ponder her new belief system. Within hours the three companions came upon Grace, who was stumbling through a middle-class housing development. She was closely watched by Pride, but he was not leading her. Strangely enough, he was a step behind her, like a shadow that you can’t tell is there. His face was encompassed with a sly grin, which quickly faded when he sensed the presence of light. Suddenly he became alert and wheeled about to see what was there. Hope stepped out with the affirming nods of her companions and spoke his name. Quickly, he turned again, and at the sight of her great shining light he ran. If Grace had not been lost in her own thoughts she might have heard him squealing. With Pride gone Hope stepped aside to allow the chosen messenger through. The Maker had chosen Love as the best weapon against Pride, and she took her charge very seriously. Hope and Faith watched and waited as Love quietly walked up behind Grace.

Grace suddenly felt an overwhelming sensation of dizziness and pressure in her chest. The Fear that had already encompassed her heart gripped tighter as she wondered what could possibly be happening to her physical body. She did not know what to do. "He loves you," she heard almost whispered from behind her. Turning about, she saw one of the most beautiful creatures in all the Maker’s kingdom. Love stood, encompassed by a light so pure it cannot be looked at with the human eye. Within her human body, Grace had to look away. It was then that she realized what she had done to herself. Of course she recognized Love as one of her dearest friends from back home. "Home," she thought, "It would be so nice to be home." "Why can’t I look at you?" she said. Love replied in a very consoling voice, but also with sternness, "You have chosen a different path, one away from the Maker. Things you had before you will never have again, until you choose the one thing that you have yet rejected." Grace fell to her knees, face to the ground, and began to weep. "I can’t," she replied simply. "I just can’t." Within an instant the blinding light was gone and Grace looked up to find only emptiness on quiet streets. She had some how expected to be convinced to come back, and she couldn’t understand why her dear friend would leave her so soon. "I am no longer worthy of her company," she thought. Grace stood and slowly continued walking in no particular direction at all. The Maker had chosen the hard way to win her back, and in His perfect will He knew that if Grace did not come back on her own, she would never come back to stay. There would be many difficult days ahead, for both of them.

Copyright © 2005 by Jamie Madera. Reproduction is forbidden without permission. Contact me at jamielynne87@yahoo.com.

Why do we write?

Someone I work with recently said that "the true purpose of all writing is to pove the existence of God." I have been thinking about this a lot lately and I honestly have not decided if I agree with it or not. This made me think about how we all probably have different reasons for writing, and even though we all share our common love for Christ we may not share our "writing purpose." I would like to hear what you think about this. Do you believe we all have a common purpose as writers to "prove the existence of God" or do you think we all have our own separate purposes as writers? And also, why do you personally love to write? For me, I think that my purpose as a writer is not to prove the existence of God, but to bring people closer to the reality of His love through the stories that He gives me. I would love to hear your thoughts on this. :)