FROM EARTH TO ETERNITY

By Gail Fulkerson

The elderly gentleman made his way slowly down the street with his walker. He was heading home after being at the grocery store to buy tomatoes and milk. He had plans to make tomato soup, but that was as far as he got before he clutched his chest and keeled over. He was dead before he hit the sidewalk. 

He stood and looked down at his prone body and wondered how it was that he could see his body but not feel it. That’s when a man walked up and checked his body for signs of life, but couldn’t find any.  He pulled out his phone and called 9-1-1.

Minutes later, an ambulance arrived. The attendants got out and checked the body for signs of life, but there were none. They loaded the body into the back of the ambulance and drove away, heading for Royal University Hospital. At the last minute, the older man hopped into the ambulance and wondered why no one was attending to him. And where was his walker? He’d need that after the doctors and nurses deemed him a little shook up and discharged him.

He tried to get back into his body, but it was as though all the doors and windows were shut and locked against him, and he couldn't get back in. He was about to panic when a Light Being appeared beside him and told him not to worry; everything was unfolding as planned. The Being explained that he’d died and that was why he couldn’t get back into his body. Time had run out, and there was no turning back the clock. 

The older man wanted to cry. He had plans for the rest of today and the week ahead. He supposed the plans didn’t matter now that he was dead, and he was right. He stayed with his newly vacated body until they wheeled it into the morgue and began prepping it for autopsy. He tried to tell them he’d had a massive coronary in the street, but no one seemed to hear him, no matter how loudly he spoke. It was maddening.

The Light Being was by his side again. “I don’t think you want to stay for the autopsy, Fred. It gets pretty gory after the incision is made, and I don’t think you have the stomach for watching the Coroner put his hands all over your innards. Let’s get out of here, shall we?” 

Fred agreed with the Light Being, and they left the morgue. The pair ended up at Fred’s house. The two of them floated through the walls and into the living room. They each took a seat on the settee; one on one end and the other opposite.

“What now?” asked the old man of the Light Being. 

The Light Being pondered the question and formulated an answer he thought the older man would understand. “When you died on the street, your soul left your body. The silver cord was severed, which is why you couldn’t get back into your body. Was there something here in the house you wanted? Remember, you can’t take anything with you.”

“I know, I just wanted to take a final look around the place, but I don’t remember why it was so important that I did,” commented the older gentleman.

The Light Being took the man’s hand, and together they floated through the ceiling and into the night. The Light Being took the older man on a tour of the town he lived in, a final farewell to an earthly life. 

“Thank you for the final tour,” the older man said to the Light Being, as they rose higher into the night sky. The town’s lights below glowed and twinkled as the pair ascended; then they were lost in the twinkling lights of more towns and cities the higher they went. 

The two of them were floating high above the clouds as they looked down a final time upon the Earth, the older man’s home for all of his 90 years. In a blink, they were in another realm, one of diffused light that was easy on the eyes and seemed to come from everywhere. As the older man acclimated, he noticed his ethereal body had a faint glow that brightened as he watched. His corporeal body faded away, absorbed by the glowing light surrounding him. He became a Light Being.

“Welcome home, Fred. It’s great to have you back,” said the Light Being. “We will have a homecoming party for you after you’ve rested. Not to worry, we won’t start without you.” 

The older gentleman yawned and lay down upon a bed that seemed made of clouds; it was so soft. He fell into a deep, dreamless slumber. He was finally home again. 

The man slept peacefully and awoke years later, refreshed. There was no more pain from aching joints and tendonitis in his shoulders. He found that he could walk without the use of his walker; his body healed and felt like he was in his prime, which he was. His glow had also brightened with rest. 

As promised, Fred, the newly created Light Being, was welcomed home by countless Light Beings; the party lasted for weeks. Every soul had a fantastic time, but none more than Fred.

A new soul was being welcomed back. Fred was front and centre, welcoming the newest member to the group. 

“Welcome home, Vera!” the crowd sang. Vera smiled widely, thanked the group, then told them she was tired and needed to rest. They bade her a refreshing sleep and let her go.

Transition is quick and peaceful for all souls once they’re on the Other Side. It’s done and over with in the blink of an eye; at least it seems that way from the perspective of a newly minted soul. 

It happens to all of us, sooner or later. 

I prefer later.

Gail Fulkerson is a writer and a regular contributor to 'OZ', who specializes in writings of the supernatural. She lives with her family in Saskatchewan, where she is working on another story. Gail just published her new book: "Tales of the Macabre". The book is available at Turning the Tide bookstore in Saskatoon or online direct from Gail. Make a comment and I will pass on your information to her. Stay tuned to 'OZ' for future stories.