The full moon loomed pale green in the liquid
ink night. The graveyard markers dotted the black soil in random patterns. Some
broken and tilted from age, they told the names of the once living souls below. It was midnight.
It was a long walk and the group of six was intent in their journey.
"You hold the fence up while we crawl under," said the one that had been there
before.
"Are you sure it's safe here?" the male fence-holder remarked.
"Yes, there's no one here. The roadway used to go past, but it was closed
down many years ago."
"This is truly a strange place," one of the female companions crawled under
the rusty chain link fence.
"Look at the house. Is it out of your worst nightmare or what? said another."
The 150-year-old house stared at its visitors, its windows serving as eyes, seemed to
blink.
"Forget the house look at the graveyard, these old dates, Edna Thelma Hines,
1849 -- 1913, Gone but not Forgotten, with a name like that how could we forget?"
"Look at this one, Victor Lugar Hines, 1822 -- 1897, Rest in Peace, fat chance in this place."
"So this is the old Hines Mansion. Weren't they crazy?" the first female
walked toward the house.
"Yeah, very crazy. I heard they locked people in the basement."
Everyone looked at the basement windows. an old curtain blew from a breeze
through a cracked glass pane, it waved a greeting.
"Wow, okay you were right, this is a very scary place," the second female
rested against an old statute. "Lets go back."
"Why, you're not afraid are you?" her boyfriend asks.
"Don't be ridiculous, I have you."
"First let's rest before we go back," the leader takes the group toward the porch of
the old mansion. He sits down on an old swing and motioned the rest to sit on
adjacent chairs, He takes out a candle and places it on a near by table. "I brought a book, I'd
like to read a story before we leave. It will be a nice way to spend an
October Night."
The group watched while he takes an old book out of his pocket. "Scary
Stories" the title read.
"Okay, here we go, who's for reading about Bigfoot? A huge hairy monster chased me through
the forest," the reader continues, " he caught and tore at the cloth of my
jacket. The next day, his prints could be seen around my cabin windows."
"Wow, Bigfoot. I believe in that. My uncle said he saw one up in the Louisiana
swamps when he was a kid. He told us all kinds of stories."
"What else do you have," asked the first female.
"Okay lets see, The Haunted Mansion," he reads, turning to a page. "Every
time I laid on the bed, even though I knew I was alone, I could feel someone
else climb on the mattress with me. When I looked no one was there."
"It was a ghost," answered one.
"Oh, my goodness," the second female said. "How do you know?"
"I know about haunted houses."
"I always thought they were demons," said a person that had been quiet, up
until now. Almost everyone looked at the quiet person like he had taken leave
of his senses. Somewhere in the distance the sound of a howling dog pierced
the silence.
"Well, that is kind of commonplace," the reader comments. "Let me see, The
Loch Ness Monster."
I've seen pictures of him, he's a sea serpent, a very old one that still
lives."
"Wow," said the group.
The candlelight flickered on the face of the reader, "I brought an ancient
mummy back to life and learned the secrets of reincarnation..."
"Cool," said the group.
"I really like this one, 'How to be a Vampire,' make new friends."
"Nah, too messy, always needing all that blood."
"Here's a good one, lets try this one," the reader read on. "The Space Ship,
I was abducted by aliens. The
knowledge in my brain was sucked out by an outer space creature.'"
"Hey, you know there has to be something else out there," the first female
looks up at the sky just in time to catch sight of a falling star.
"Of course there's something else out there," the second female shook her
head.
"All kinds of people have seen UFO's. you know they exist," the graveyard leader gives a
knowing glance around the group.
"Well, I didn't mean unidentified flying objects. I meant Jesus."
"What are you talking about? Jesus?" the reader seems irritated. "Are we
going to talk about a myth? Count me out."
"A myth?" the fence-holder blows out the candle, leaving the moon glow to light
the area. "Did a myth light that?" he pointed to the sky. "Did a myth hang the
stars? Make you and I? Form this planet? He's not a myth but, we
can talk about other myths why would you not want talk about that?"
"Hey," answered the reader. "I thought we were going to have some fun, not
talk about anything offensive."
"Offensive? The Mummy is not offensive? Aliens? Vampires? You
came here to show us the house of a crazy person," the second female stands up.
"Wouldn't that be offensive? Who is behind that abnormal feeling of offense?
Isn't it suspicious that you're offended by something that's not offensive and
not by what is? Why wouldn't you be curious about that, if you're so
curious?"
"Makes no sense that people get so upset over that topic. It's like some
inner, unexplained desire wants to strike out in uncharacteristic outrage over
something that's not even an insult. Someone is fueling that attitude. Why
else would they feel it?" the fence-holder continues. "If someone is fueling
that feeling, then why and who would it be?"
"I always thought it was demons," said the one that had been mostly quiet, up until now.
Almost everyone looked at him, like he had just taken leave of his senses. In
the distance a lone dog howled, piercing the silence.
Contributed by Marjeana Martin
Comments/Feedback are welcome at her
e-mail box.
Originally appeared
on Daily Wisdom
- October 31, 2001
Plain Papers on the Holy Spirit
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