189 Raptus Interruptus

Gavin discovered the quintessential pathos for his documentary--his MFA degree thesis: the Viviano family.

Dominick, the father, eschatology devotee, had done research his whole life and knew the exact date of the Rapture, when he, his family, and all God's faithful would be taken up to Heaven, leaving the rest of humanity to face seven years of the Tribulation.

Dominick had fully mortgaged their home to finance publishing his "End Times" glossy pamphlet. He and his wife had quit their jobs so that the family could distribute them--on windshields, in mailboxes, and attached to blanket emails by the millions. They had their website.

For months, Gavin documented their hopes, predictions, and frenzy, without judgment or commentary; he felt the documentary spoke for itself.

"Gavin," Dominick said, "we really love you for documenting this. When it happens, the naysayers will look back on your work and know the truth. They'll know why many disappeared and graduated to something better, but why so many didn't. We can only hope and pray that you evanesce into the Lord's dominion with us."

"Not likely," Gavin answered.

"But why?"

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Viviano, but I just don't believe any of it."

"That's fair, but you could be wrong."

"I know. That's why I'm here recording your journey."

Gavin knew, instead, he was documenting delusional religious hysteria, not a faithful family swept up into Salvation. Without adding a thing, Gavin's opus was satirical ridicule.

When the date came, he'd be there filming the Vivianos' humiliation: mortgaged house, jobless family, and repudiation of their entire belief system--not a story of blind devotion but one of folly and ruin.

But Gavin hadn't figured on coming to care for them--gentle people who only wanted good for others.

He loathed the coming heartbreak over their humiliation at the hands of secular reality. He couldn't bear that.

The day, hour, and even the minute came, and at the very last moment Gavin stole out the back door, leaving his videography equipment rolling.

That's when the Vivianos realized that Gavin had disappeared but--to their horror--they had not.

Gavin never returned for his equipment. Even though he trashed his thesis and his work, he graduated into something better.

.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE:

For Sunday, July 7, Day 189 of the 2024 Story-a-Day Challenge

366 WORDS (without A/N)

Title-accompaniment photo was AI-generated but the apocalypse is not!

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ABOUT THIS STORY:

Based on a true story. I was following the web site of a family who was "all in" on Judgment Day on a certain day. Believing it entirely, they mortgaged their home and quit their jobs to finance their ministry of warning about the pending Rapture. I don't know if I was interested in great pathos being presented in a documentary or just plain cruel, but I advised a friend in film school he should follow them and be there when the Rapture didn't happen. He didn't. The date came and went. The next day, the web site was down and I never heard anything of this family again. Hope their doing well. Hope they all get to Heaven the old-fashioned way one day. (Me, too!)

I was unsure how to end it. My options included the Rapture being true for Gavin to witness and document, the Rapture being true and only Gavin ascending in front of the horrified Vivianos; or the way I ended it, with the Vivianos thinking Gavin was the only one faithful enough to ascend to God, while they remained--horrified--that they didn't make the cut. My end also had a spiritual moment for Gavin who grew to love these gentle, misguided people, and couldn't bear to participate in the cruel ridicule the documentary would end up.

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There are currently three surviving Vocal writers still participating in the insane 2024 Story-a-Day Challenge:

• L.C. Schäfer, challenge originator

• Rachel Deeming

• Gerard DiLeo (some other guy)

Read them. Support them. Pray for them. Ascend with them when...well, you know.