World of Good - Chapter 16

Chapter 16

“The Ancients...”

The animals were taken to a grazing corral, while we were led to a receiving area that was plain yet comfortable. As we waited, Dale and Tammy nosed around, while Tom and Shelby discussed her conversation with Tragu. I looked for a communications port to learn more of their culture, but found none. In fact, as I inspected the room, there were no technical devices anywhere. It was as if we were at an old hunting lodge in the back woods. Eventually, a green skinned fellow, wearing a Triclet, entered the room. He was older, wearing the traditional linen garb that many of the Vlancos wore.

“Greetings, my friends from Earth. It is a pleasure to have you in our company. My name is Anon. I will be your mentor during your stay.”

“Hello,” I said bowing. I pointed to each of my crew. “This is Tom, Shelby, Tammy, and Dale.”

Anon returned the bow. “I am pleased to meet each of you, I am sure we will learn much from one another.”

“Chip is another member of the crew. However, he had some research back at our ship and wasn’t able to make it,” I added.

“I see. We will miss him then.”

“Speak for yourself,” Tammy mumbled.

Anon didn’t seem to hear her. “Tragu is the son of my generations. He told me you wish to participate in the expected battle. It is my task to assist you in this preparation.”

“Tragu is related to you?” I questioned.

“Yes, he visits me quite often. Now back to the task at hand. To be forthright, there is little physical training involved. More metaphysical training, involving the understanding of the messenger and the Creator, which I am sure you have heard about by now. And finally, whether or not you have passed through.”

“I remember that stuff from the security Advisor,” Dale said, recalling his incarceration.

I looked back at Dale and then to the Advisor and it dawned on me this wasn‘t going to be an ordinary military battle development class. “By metaphysical, do you mean there will be no military training at all?”

“Not in the regular sense of the word, Alex.”

I was getting less and less impressed with their ‘training.’ “Can you give us a minute to confer with one another?”

“Yes. By all means.”

I huddled the crew together. “Guys, I think this has to do with religion, not battle techniques, are you up to it.”

“Up to what? said Tom. What does this have to do with the imminent war with the Negritee?”

Tammy crossed her arms and scowled. “I knew it was some sort of cult thing.”

Dale was more optimistic. “I don’t know what these guys are up to, but they’ve always made sense before. I wouldn’t mind listening.”

“Dale, you are such a pushover! You’d follow lemmings if they were here,” said Tammy.”

I wasn’t in the mood for a unanimous agreement. “Listen guys, you can stay or go, but whatever you do, make a decision now. I want us to be in this together. If we’re lucky, maybe they’ll teach us ESP or magic tricks or who knows what.”

Tammy relented. “Good point, Alex.”

“Thank you, Tammy...”

“Or you may be going off the deep end,” she added curtly.

I gave a pained squint and dropped my head in frustration.

Tom surrendered. “Okay, okay. I’ll give it a try.”

“Tom!” challenged Tammy.

“What! We just traveled two days on Cahu. I don’t intend to turn right around now.”

Tammy threw up her hands and turned away. “Fine, let‘s get it over with.”

“I’m sorry, what did you say?” I asked.

“I said fine,” murmured Tammy.

“What?”

“Fine,” she repeated louder.

“What? I didn’t quite hear you.”

“I SAID FINE!!” she shouted, “DID YOU HEAR THAT!” she starred at me, square in the face eyes fixed.

I didn’t move. Behind me, I heard Dale say “touchy aren’t we.” After a few very long seconds, all the air seemed to come out of her and she dropped her shoulders.

Tammy gave in. “Okay, let’s get this over with.

I reached out and lightly squeezed her shoulders. I spoke quietly. “Tammy, I’m not going to let them brainwash us or anything. Be on your guard. If anything gets out of hand, we can bail out at anytime...” I stood up to look at the rest of the crew. “But come on guys, it’s highly unlikely something strange is going to happen. You’ve spent time with them. Their like pussy cats.”

I saw Shelby standing to the side, quietly studying us, deep in thought. She’s been acting a little strange ever since we landed on this planet. I walked back over to fill in Anon of our decision to learn more, but reminded him that we must have full control over whether or not we continue. He agreed and led us back to what looked like a lecture auditorium.

Shelby, please be seated in the adjacent room. I would like to talk to your companions separately,” said the Ancient.

Shelby approached the opening to the bordering room, gave us a smile and went in.

“Why is she being separated from the rest of us?” I asked Anon.

“She understands who the Creator is, Alex,” he said matter-of-factly.

I couldn’t help but challenge him. “How do you know? You just met her.”

“We know that Alex. You will have to trust me on this.”

I knew it! That’s what it was Stron saw in Shelby. “When you say that Shelby understands the Creator, I’m assuming you don’t think the rest of us do. I’m a Catholic and know a hell of a lot more than you think. The church I go to isn’t weird. It’s stable, and helps out the community.”

Anon sighed. “Alex, how did you become a member of your assembly?”

“Well, they said I had to go through some classes and traditional ceremonies, either that or I couldn’t marry my wife.”

“Did they ask you about your inner host?”

“I assume you mean my heart. Yes, they mentioned Jesus died for the sins of the world and even though I didn’t understand it all they accepted me anyway, as long as I kept the sacraments of course. But not Holy Orders—that was for Priests, and I certainly didn’t want to be a priest.”

“Alex, wait a moment. Before you continue, I would like to suggest that instead of thinking about what is important to you, try to think about what is important to the Creator.”

“I do...I help others, and when I screw-up I go to confession.”

“Those are admirable actions, Alex. However, does your sacrifice to assist others truly come from within?”

I know I was getting sucked in, but I couldn’t help it. “Well I can’t just rely on how I ‘feel within,’ so I use my mind. My life has rules, and I follow them.”

Anon continued to stay calm. “Alex, I am glad you use your intellect to try and separate your emotions when making decisions. However I do not believe it is possible…they are brothers that never stray from one another. But my intended question is not your emotions, but your inner host, your spirit.”

This was getting tiring. “Listen, if we are getting ready to go into battle, why is it so important that you are so concerned with the integrity of a person!”

“It is because you are what you believe, Alex. You show your faith by what you do. Your actions indicate your belief system. How one contributes one’s abilities to the community defines how the community will function as a whole.”

“What if I didn’t produce for the good of the community? Am I supposed to feel guilty, if I making a mistake I didn’t do on purpose? Are you going to hold it against me, or forgive me?”

“Would you like me to release you of your actions?”

“Sure. I’m not a saint.”

“It would be a simple escape to suggest that you made a mistake and we forgive you. However, deep inside your heart you have ingrained that which is important to you. Thus, you behave in a way that is a ‘mistake.’ Now, how can we be sure you will change for the better? Isn’t it more difficult to discontinue future ‘mistakes’ after you have done a wrong, then to never have wronged at all.”

“That sounds like a lot of subconscious mumbo jumbo. I think that you make a few mistakes here and there and it’s just a part of being human.”

“Maybe it is a part of being an Earth Human, but as a Vlanco, we believe that you don’t need to make mistakes. You can achieve perfection, not only for a brief moment in time, but also for many, many years. However,” he said coming closer to me, eyes fixed on mine, “do not think you can do it on your own power.”

He paused to let that soak in.

“And?” I said, impatiently.

“You must be close to the Creator for you to accomplish it. It is an intertwining relationship between the physical and the metaphysical, the seen and the unseen. He provides the power for you to accomplish the needed goals as long as you subject your will to His. Otherwise you are operating on your own imperfect power, which will direct your life into unpredictable consequences. Therefore, by letting go of what you desire, you allow the Creator’s desires to develop you into what you were meant to be.”

“Okay, then tell us what to do so we can be perfect.”

“You keep thinking of what you should do, based either on yours or my solutions. To truly understand what your essence is, you must move beyond your physical senses toward a world that which is not seen. That is where the true aspect of the Creator is. To understand what you must do you must first get close to Him through communication…the way we are talking now, but only in your mind and heart.”

“But I’ve tried praying and I’ve never heard anything from Him. I’ve learned that things happen regardless of my prayers. Sometimes good things happen and sometimes bad things happen. I don’t buy into the idea that I can manipulate God by praying for it. He’s going to do what he thinks is best, not because I talked to him.”

I was getting caught up in the whole discussion and almost forgot about the rest of the crew listening in. Nevertheless, they seemed to be just as involved and waited for the outcome of our conversation/debate.

Anon persisted. “In your mind, it may seem that there is no logic to what occurs in life...tragedy, joy, senseless death, peace, war, and so on. However, this is only because one hasn’t the understanding of the Creator’s plan. And we understand it less when we are distant from Him, and understand it more when we are close to Him.” He paused to think. He rub his chin, and look at the ground, then turned to speak to all of us. “Would you like me to offer an analogy?”

“Why not?” I asked unenthusiastically.

Your understanding of events does not happen instantly, much like when you were a child, learning your own language took many months to acquire understanding. You learn the symbols used for building words and then words used to build sentences, and finally sentences with complex meaning. That is how understanding the Creator is. We are like children, expressing our concerns to him and as time elapses, so does our understanding and our requests. Therefore, do not expect the Creator’s knowledge to drop into your lap. Stay close to him and he will enlighten you with wisdom. Wisdom which enables you to know how to talk and know Him and His will, better.”

Dale interrupted, “Yeah, I see what you mean. If the Creator made everything, then he’s got to be smart enough to know how to help us comprehend the things in the Universe. What I don’t get is—what does all this have to do with the impending doom from the Negritee?”

“Dale, I have been alive 474 years. How old are you?”

“Um 32, 33 in two weeks.”

“Do you have more knowledge and understanding than a Five-year-old Earth child?”

“Yes, of course.”

“How much knowledge and understanding do you think I might have over you?” Anon's face was strong and unyielding, calm and compassionate.

Dale crossed his arms and puckered his lips. He gazed at the ceiling. “Um, more than a little?” he said, trying to deflect Anton's attention.

“Yes Dale,” he chuckled. “More than a little. Now realize that I am only 474 years old and the Creator is infinite in age. I am but a small child in His eyes. Although I have only been talking to him for over 450 years and met the Messenger when I was 52, believe me when I say that speaking with the Creator is an essential element to the impending doom from the Negritee.”

We suddenly were all silent, recognizing the respect Anon deserved. Debating someone with his knowledge would be futile, and we realized that it would be better to listen as much as possible, from now on.

It was time for me to concede. “I think we’ll take your word for what you have said, but what do expect from us then?”

“Follow, me,” he said walking toward the exit.

We followed him to a room with several Vlanco people sitting and enjoying each other’s company. They looked up and greeted us from a distance. He led us to some seats on the outer wall and asked us to sit.

Anon stepped back. “It is just about time for my friends and me to be in-touch with one another. Please observe. I will be with you afterwards.”

They started to form a circle and arranged themselves comfortably in a seated position. In came Shelby with another Ancient. She glanced at us briefly and smiled as they directed her to sit in the circle.

“What the....” Dale started to say, just as the lighting dimmed slightly.

Things got serious when the lights dimmed and they closed their eyes. They started humming with hands on their legs. Eventually they reached out toward one another, touching each other’s fingertips. Shelby seemed to fit right in, but the rest of us felt stiff in our seats, awkwardly glancing at each other for feedback. As time went by, and we got more comfortable. I felt a tingling sensation in the room. I noticed Tammy rubbing her arms perplexed. It was a very content feeling, like goose bumps, but with a soothing warmth. After awhile, the humming changed into quiet, verbal speech. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. But just as I was making out the words, everything ceased and they opened their eyes. Shelby was grinning from ear to ear. They stood up and milled about as if nothing happened, but it was obvious from Shelby something had.

Shelby walked over to us with Anon. “I am so young,” she said with embarrassment. “There are children on this planet with more maturity than me.”
“What do you mean Shelby,” I said.

“When I was ‘in-touch,’ as they call it, I connected with all of the Vlanco people who were in-touch at the same time. There is a one-ness that is hard to explain, but it is a spiritual energy that gives me some sort of insight. It wasn’t like I was communicating...more like, I just knew things, or things came to me that I hadn’t thought of before. It was—oh it’s too hard to explain,” she said in frustration.

“As we in the Vlanco system are in-touch, we acquire much strength and power, given by the Creator,” claimed Anon. “It was fortunate we had Shelby present, so she could help bridge the credibly between you and us.” he put his arm around Shelby and gave her a quick squeeze. “Come, let us continue our conversation in the other room.”

As we walked, Anon directed the conversation back to me again. “Alex, it seems your friends at your assembly on Earth, may actually have done you a disservice by accepting you into their membership.”

“Why do you say that? I thought they were very loving to accept me in.”

“They may have had good intentions. Let us sit and I will tell you an old story, told to me when I was young.”

We sat down and got comfortable, in their cushions. He stood up, posing, as if he was going to act it out.

“I hope you don’t mind me exercising some animation. It gives me pleasure to describe events with my actions.”

“No, go ahead,” I encouraged.

“Many years ago a young man wanted to travel to a small village, far away.” He reached outward to the opposite wall, then cupped his hands together. “The village was known for its special waters that rejuvenate people, extending health and age.”

We could see he was enjoying this, and I guess for us, it was cheap entertainment.

“There were two routes available for him to take: the easy, enjoyable route through the forest and meadows, or the dangerous, difficult route through the desert. However, it was told that to prepare himself properly for the waters to be effective, he should travel through the desert—even though many have died taking that path. He decided to take the safer route, and when he found plenty of food available, it only confirmed in his mind that he had made the proper decision. Many days passed when he finally found the village and its special water at the rare spring. But upon swallowing the water, his stomach could not tolerate the liquid. He decided to try some of the water from other sources and had no problems adjusting. The people were kind and accepted him into the community, so he decided to stay. As the months wore on, he continued to test the special water every now and then, but his stomach could not adapt to it. Nevertheless, he learned to love the people and live with them, and accepted the fact that his health didn’t have the vitality like the rest of the people. What he never learned, was to survive by going through the desert, one would have to drink the waters from the soil rich in special compounds. These compounds would change his body chemistry, giving him the ability to accept the special waters. What is sad, is that he realized, too late, that drinking ordinary water had little affect on the level of his health. If he had taken the difficult route through the desert, he would have had a long and healthy life.”

Anon finished his story, with accompanying gestures, then bowed. “What do you think, my friends? How did I do? It was completely improvised.” He grinned like a child coming off stage.

“Yeah, it was good,” “Sure,” “No, it was fine,” commented the crew.

“Thank you. More importantly, do you understand my message?”

Tom offered his two cents. “It seems to me that if they were really kind, they would have sent him back to go through the desert.”

“That is true Tom, but many of us find it difficult to be persuaded to re trace our steps when it seems obvious we have found what we were looking for.”

“Why didn’t they just tell him to leave and tell him why?” asked Dale.

“Dale, the obvious answer is not always the most beneficial answer. Many times we take the path of comfort, rather than facing difficulties and opening wounds too painful to bear. And many times, we will not obey the advice from others, particularly if we are not willing to convince ourselves. I am sure Alex would have found it difficult to postpone his marriage, while he analyzed whether or not to be a member of that assembly you call church.”

“So are you saying that I should have learned some deep meanings from my hard times before I accepted the membership of my church?” I questioned.

“That is a portion of what I am saying. What is essential, is not only learning from difficulties in life, but also resolving them and preparing for the conflicts that may lie ahead of us, rather than taking the easy route.”

He examined each one of us, slowly, with a solemn look. “To be successful in life, we need to believe what we do, and do what we believe…remember this. I know you are not cowards, because you have journeyed into outer space, and into unknown territory. However, true bravery occurs when one journeys to the inner space of our souls. Are you Earth people brave enough for that? Because to allow the Creator to speak to us, we must be able to receive his insight.”

We sat there, scratching our heads. We looked around to one another, waiting for someone to speak first.

I spoke up first. “Honestly, Anon one, I don’t know if I am ready to face some of my ghosts.”

“I might be, if I had more time,” said Dale.

Tammy and Tom didn’t say a word.

“Although this is not an easy step to take, it is a simple thing to accomplish. Facing your ghosts really has little to do with knowing the Creator. The greatest difficulty is the patterns of behavior ingrained within. Fears such as, being uncomfortable, or making changes, or maybe being thought less of. Nevertheless, the Creator is ominous and caring to all, and understands these things.”

“I’m sure He does,” sighed Tammy. “But I don’t know if I’m ready for this spiritual stuff.”

A pregnant pause filled the room. Anon sat back and considered her words…or maybe he was just buying some time for effect.

“It is quite astounding how you Earth people are so consternated about making decisions. Is it not less painful to consider your alternatives and follow through with you judgment, than to wade through pain?”

Anon started smiling but pulled it back before he broke out laughing at us. He caught himself and straightened up. “Excuse me, if I have offended thee. This is to be considered a joyful event in our culture. As you can see, such fears are confusing to me.” With a kind pat of his hand on my shoulder, he addressed me. “I admire how your crew bonds together Alex, but I believe it best that you allow your crew to make an individual assessment rather than do this as a group.”

As Anon spoke, it became clear to me Dale was right. I am a mother trying to keep all my chicks together. It must be my middle child syndrome. I’ve tried to make us all happy and keep us together to do the same thing and it was making none of us happy. My crew was giving me the evil eye, or so it seemed. I relinquished by agreeing with Anon that an individual assessment was necessary.

“Go ahead Tammy, if you want to go, just meet us back at the ship in a few days.”

“Woohoo!” she said as she danced a little jig. Then she caught her exuberance. “I mean thanks Alex, I appreciate your flexibility,” she said, poised and proper, hands resting in front of her.”

“Now Tammy, if you change your mind—”

“Nope, I’m just fine,” she interrupted.

“Yeah, but if you—”

“Nope, it’s okay, Alex, I’m a-goin,’ she said, sashaying like a boxer.”

I closed my eyes, shook my head quickly, and turned to the others.

“Anyone else?” I questioned.

Tom tried to sound like he was being helpful. “Yeah, me too. I mean... she’s going to need an escort back, isn‘t she?”

“Dale? Shelby?” I asked.

Shelby gave me a you’ve-got-to-be-kidding scowl.

Dale looked back at Tammy for a second, looking for advice. She just gave him a blank stare and shrugged her shoulders. He pulled Tammy aside and I heard him whisper. “Didn’t your feel those goose bumps, when we were in that prayer meeting?”

“Yeah, but I get an upset stomach when I eat hot peppers. So what?”

“Never mind,” he conceded. Dale turned to the group. “Well, I’m staying. It’s going to be a lot more interesting here, than hanging around the ship, postulating theories.”

I came close to Tammy and Tom. “Well then, it’s settled. I would appreciate you two helping Chip on his progress…if there is any.”

“Sure, no problem,” said Tammy.

And with that Tammy and Tom got their gear together and met up with Tragu at the entrance for their trip back.

***

Later when we emerged from the training with Anon, we understood exactly what role the Vlancos had to play in the conflict with the Negritee. Dale had taken the step of passing through. But I still wasn’t ready (or willing). I did consider what Anon had told me about changing defective behavior. I also needed to reconsider what I believe in and live by it, instead of just living and making up the rules as I go. He said I couldn’t change my behavior without guidance from the Messenger. Lots of advice…good?

I wouldn’t mind living on a world like Onos. One that actively strives for perfection, instead of passively hoping for it. It seems that I have so restricted my mind to what it could be, I have accepted less. If I choose, I could move from an erratic, inconsistent life, to a consistent one full of a World of Good. I pulled out the Triclet that Anon gave me and examined it. It was really a beautiful ornament...but beauty doesn‘t adequately describe its significance. Its real significance was symbolizing the balance to live with our ethics and integrating them into our minds, bodies, and souls.