2014

Amaris is suddenly gone, perhaps disappeared, but Kenny right now is seated alone on the couch. "Where did she go?" "Who." "Your friend from the Refuge. Amaris." "She wasn't here" "What?" I am silently appealing. first to Erik, now to Carl. "Did...Did Kenny come here alone?" "I have been with you since yesterday", he says, a slight perplexed smile adorning his lips. "I am afraid he is telling the truth"; says Carl. Erik?" "I think you should let me explain a thing or two", says Kenny. "Both versions are correct. I was here with you guys since we ran into you yesterday in the café, and I only just arrived here ten minutes ago." "But"...and now the words are failing me. This is happening again. "And your friend?" "I imagine she's still in Richmond. Chris...it's okay, you are a portal between the two dimensions that have just come together. It is all true. But right now you are with us... All I can do right now is sit back, quiet, stil, and breathe, slowly, rhythmically, deepy, slowly, rhythmicaly, deeply, slowly, rhythmically , deeply. This is all too much, this has all gone way beyond too much. Alice in Wonderland, anyone. And now I am singing out loud, "One pill makes you bigger, and one pill makes you small; and the ones that mother gave you don't do anything at all..."and now my voice rises in operatic flourish, chanelling the young grace Slick..."Go ask Alice....when she's ten feet tall..." Carl is clapping. "I didn't know you could sing like that, Chris...Have you had voice training?" "What I am supposed to do with all this", and now my voice rises to a near scream..."What am I supposed to do.." Kenny places his hand on my shoulder, and his touch is calming. "Chris, Jesus sent me to be with you to help you with this transition. Even though our two dimensions have come together they have unleashed a cosmic storm, and we are to wait for things to get calm again. One thing I would like to propose to all of us, and this under the mandate of our young Lord"...He reaches into his backpack and pulls out a note pad and a pen..."while we are all remembering now what happened, I am going to write it all down and we are all going to sign it. Whenever anyone of us slips into amnesia or falters into the other side, we can simply review this document together. Is it a deal?" We are eating buffet style in the living room, and Kenny has shoved his plate of food aside on the coffee table in order to focus on note taking.  "Okay, he says, to begin with, "The Refuge is a real place that exists outside of real time as we know it.  We have all been there.  It occupies the top of a small mountain on an uncharted Gulf island that now is suddenly on the map, with a tiny populated village.  Even though we have all been there, in the company of Jesus as a youth of sixteen or so in appearance only, and his parents, Joseph and Mary, who appear very aged but also strong and robust.  We also have to accept the possibility that with the merging of the dimensions, the Refuge may or may not be visible or traceable to the mortal eye....everyone here, Chris, Carl, Francois, and Erik...will you agree to add your signature...I see everyone is nodding...Okay, put down your forks and get busy..."  He passes the notepad to me with a pen.  I sign it, then pass it to Francois, who does the same, and passes it to Erik, then to Carl, all signing the document, then Carl returns it to Kenny...