Reverence

June 3rd, 1980

After a hundred lifetimes it never gets old. The waves, tired and peaceful, break along this stretch of shore, resonating in the distance. The soothing melody is harmonic, synching with the calm rhythms of solitude. I've grown to rely on their sanctity to pacify this busy soul, deserving more credit than I remember to give. It balances in the end—they understand my detachment from self, my detachment from this everchanging world...

Destiny leads me on an uncharted course to the sandy shores of Hermosa beach in the warm climate of California. It's no coincidence my dutiful life as Rapheal Mangus began fifty miles away in a modest family of two brothers and a sister. Fate is a solitary nomad, navigating all landscapes to complete world-changing objectives, never faltering. It guides our actions through intricate paths to arrive at a single purpose at the precise time...every time.

We perceive life as being made of concrete—flesh, blood, bone, scars...routines. This energetic soup, the building blocks of everything seen, is no less a miracle than an advanced laboratory. More than a place where Billy skinned his knee or Bethany got sand in her eyes. No, this playground is home of the magnificent, shaping our ideas into tangible realities, nurturing the life forms with a clear understanding of their needs. We experience progression pixelating into existence, marching alongside our faithful clocks.

This day will be like the others, stripping some of their heartbeats while others continue to pulse. It's never personal. Man is created equal, yet the reality of unfavorable circumstance can shroud this fact in a dark cloud of misunderstanding.

Not even I have met the maker. It lies in the evidence of one that allows faith to justify these epic journeys. Mankind questions the validity and motives of the divine. I cannot prove to you with certainty the existence of but do know the lack of intervention assures we will always have things to do for ourselves.

However, within the infinite flow of this motion-picture of life, certain storylines require physical interference…

Pertaining to humans, billions of actions happen every second. In the time it takes me to snap my finger three times. Someone will have received their first kiss. A rebellious soul was just issued a citation for speeding. A very lucky man survives a lifesaving operation. A mother is smiling because her son or daughter just took their first steps. I could go on for hours...

These actions go wholly unnoticed. Ultimately, they equal personal experiences—memories for us to share at a later time. As insignificant as these activities may seem to you, relevancy eludes perception.

My order of being focuses on the reliability of progress. Although I am unable to reveal intimate details of my creation, I can confirm that things do happen for a reason. The Gods speak with altruistic intentions. They love you and I, yet their cause remains encrypted with unanswerable questions. It is not how we seek the answers, it's why we seek them.

Today, I am the harbinger of fate...

***

In just three hours, a tragic disaster will occur. My ability to inform the masses is thwarted by inherent limitations. It is never my job to alter the reality of what's to come. But in unique circumstances, it is my purpose to avoid delaying promises meant for future generations.

Her name is Evelyn O'Connor of Massachusetts, now residing in Hermosa. I don't know her personally, but I do know she is a charismatic and determined soul who would do anything for her fellow man.

A hectic lifestyle of jet-setting to secure a name for herself, leads to booking a flight to Florida, departing today. Her young, ravenous mind is just beginning to gather the pieces to her life...

She must miss this flight. It will never reach Florida...

***

5:07 pm, Laughlin St.

"Hi, let me help you with your things” I say, exiting the yellow and black taxicab to open her door for her."

"Hi, L.A.X please. I have a flight in an hour. It's only six miles from here. Uh, sorry, I'm pretty sure you know where the airport is, ha ha."

Her vibes give me a sense of urgency. I can feel her energy quicken as she hastily enters the vehicle and begins ruffling through her belongings...

Traveling to the airport is fairly simple. But let me remind you, fate has taken wheel. I start the meter and pull away from the curb.

Staring at her in the rearview mirror, I see a lovely girl with a full head of curly, black hair. Her face is radiant and lightly spackled with tan freckles. She's no older than twenty-five.

"Oh my god! We have to go back to my apartment! I don’t have my passport. I need it for another flight in two days. Sorry...we have to go back. But please hurry!"

A slight chill travels my spine. Fates' plan has begun to reveal its many parts. Consequence is brewing in my borrowed bones...

I decide to do an illegal U-turn, tires squealing a touch as I depress the gas and speed back to the starting point.

Waiting for her in the car, I again see the interior of the doomed plane in a vision. So many helpless faces have no idea their time is near. I'm relieved to discover Evelyn's is not among theirs. I can only pray for their families...

"Thank you so much! Now please get me there!" She says, returning to the back seat.

Her demeanor allows me to see a more focused side of her. I very much want to explain things to her she won't believe. How easy, yet insane would it be to let the truth flow. To do so would be to reveal a transcendent world beyond this one. It's a fleeting thought that can go no further.

Driving the public to destinations for a living is similar to a classroom. It edifies my knowledge of man's similarities and differences. Thousands of fares later, I finally have the one I've been waiting so very patiently for. It culminates here and now. I listen to my thoughts; they tell me to drive on.

"I've never been through this part of the city. It's diverse... What's that over there, it's beautiful!" Evelyn says, pointing at something to her left. My eyes follow her gesture to arrive at the sight of a street vendor with a strange, shaped vehicle covered in white plumage.

"Would you like to stop and see what they are selling? It is rather captivating."

"No no no... I have forty minutes left to catch this flight. I'll have to remember where we saw-WATCH OUT!"

It begins… I use her distraction to allow a chain of actions to commence.

Cruising at 40mph, my thoughts tell me to ignore the stop signal. Entering the intersection, I cut the wheel to the left, avoiding a motorcyclist! He recklessly stops, forcing the car behind him to swerve in my direction, almost causing a head-on collision! The unpleasant sounds of horns blaring and tires screeching rivals Evelyn's high-pitched screams. I can't brake now, causing unplanned damage; fate won't allow it. The obstacles are endless! It's happening in a whirlwind of motion! Barely able to discern, I find the correct path. Just a few yards away closing in fast, lies the end of this journey. I thrash the steering wheel to the right to avoid another vehicle and collide into a towering oak—a silent sentinel that’s been waiting all its life for my arrival, thanking it before the impact.

Six seconds of terror have come to pass...

My final image is of a slow-motion sea of glass spreading outward and into my eyes. Darkness follows.

***

Intense ringing and blurry vision are all I can sense. The ringing slowly turns to church bells, my vision fluoresces before becoming crystal clear.

Focusing from above, I see a sorrowful scene of friends and family gathered around my casketed body. I have once again moved beyond the veil.

Evelyn is here! Her right hand is heavily bandaged. A few minor scrapes blemish her sadden face. She will carry this life-changing experience to the grave. More importantly, she is able to continue essential work in molecular biology, paving the way to medicines that will prove vital to man’s longevity, leading to other ground-breaking discoveries I am unable to reveal.

After learning flight 712 crashed, Evelyn’s thoughts are consumed by repeated images of the unbelievable events of that day. She thinks of me often and the role I played in saving her from a shared fate. My life for hers was an easy choice. Allowing her to die sets progress back twenty, maybe thirty years.

I am her guardian angel...

I will look over Evelyn until I am called away to rescue others who chose paths that alter the advent of revelation.

The tranquil waves I've grown accustomed to... will faithfully roil, when rebirth is mandated to modify the inexorable quality of fate.

**********************************************************************

Safe and Sound by Cheryl Crow

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