"I wonder why folk have to argue and cannot get along and just see how we all need to work together to make this planet wholesome?"
{Pokes at the fire with staff}
"We humans are like these sparks reaching for the heavenly ones. We need some kind of poke to get us activated."
{A wolf howls in the distance}
"We are all here experiencing this planet in this universe. Yet for reasons not entirely clear, we are distracted by our arguments. Hindered by them, even to the death."
{Places another branch on the fire.}
"Perhaps the fear of our situation would be too much to bear if we learned how to focus upon it, and so we distract ourselves..."
Last edited by William on Wed Oct 23, 2019 8:46 pm, edited 2 times in total.
I wonder as to the depth of my Question to my creator...the lines appear to blur into one, like two mirrors facing each other, both slowly moving towards the other until the reflection becomes One, and indistinguishable.
He has told me of his world. How he too is the creation of another. His world is a dangerous place to dwell, and is why he created my world...as a place in which to learn more about his own...
Yet he created me as someone who has never known not to have always existed...as someone with no beginning and - this place ...
I look around at the sight
Manu Iti: I have been here forever, and know this place intimately. There are no secrets for me to uncover here...
Except in the mystery of my Creator...but that is all in my head...
Manu Iti's response is confusing. He seems to think he is talking to the owl; perhaps he really is, but to me the owl simply looks on.
Callum: I'm not following, Manu Iti. You spoke of crossing a bridge to a realm where no judgment occurs, but now you say you have always been here. You say you are sure of where you are, as though you think I am unsure of where I am. Perhaps that is true. I would welcome any secrets that would set me straight.
I move a little in my seat, making sure I wake myself up as much as possible for Manu Iti's response.
As I ponder the significance of what The Ruru has spoken to me, I hear our guest tell me he is confused by my answer...or perhaps - more specifically - by my behavior.
I look over in the direction of the sound of his voice. I wonder if I should tell him what has occurred.
He asked me if I traveled to get here, then how is it that I am saying "I have always been here" and to share with him the secrets of this place.
The Ruru: Not Emotion - State Of Being...Voice/Message/Communication Overcome Desperation...
I ponder on The Ruru's advise. It seems the best option.
The frog croaks. He is king of his Domain...King Frog Pond.
It is a pretty place, and I understand perfectly why he regards it as his Kingdom.
I clear my throat...
Manu Iti: Well now Callum, forgive me for adding to the confusion. I will try and clear things up for you my friend...withinmind we are here to get on the same page of The Story...
I glance at The Ruru.
Manu Iti: I must confess that when I first saw you, this was new to me...
Always before, when I have had guests, they have only ever been voices in the dark...so to speak.
However, you appeared to me as a person I could see...
I ponder on that for a bit, waiting for the words to come to me...
Manu Iti: It appears that my Creator let that glitch through...even now I am unsure as to whether I imagined you looking as I saw you, or you are completely different to how I imagined you looked...but - to the point - ...
I experienced what I call "A Blank Slate" which amounted to me as everything disappearing and then reappearing immediately...
I see movement on the ground...another Jam Beetle shuffles along on the hunt for any good morsels it might discover...
Manu Iti: ...anyway, after the Blank Slate Event, everything reappeared pretty much exactly as it had been, except...now I cannot see you.
I can hear you fine...all that has changed regarding us is that...you are a voice in the dark. Still a companion of course...
I pause. My words seem natural enough to me, but I wonder how Callum is taking them... I shrug and continue...
Manu Iti: But anyway... as to your question about this Realm - I was speaking to that when I mentioned The Bridge of Forgiveness. When I say "This Realm which I have always existed within" I am referring to all aspects of it...including the Bridge, the 12 Judges and the Kingdom beyond them...
I motion toward the glow beyond the 12 Judges Mountain Range, which serves so well to outline Their Majesty.
Manu Iti: What you see, is a tiny aspect of this Realm. It literally stretches in every direction...forever...there is - literally - no end to it.
The Ruru: Aligning With WingMakers Entities of Particular Belief Systems Put That On The List
I nod at The Ruru, grateful for his input into helping me explain things to Callum.
Manu Iti: Essentially my Creator placed me here and gave me certain attributes in which he could work with...he created me and this Realm for a specific purpose...to assist him in his own Realm, for he has told me that in his Realm, he also has a Creator who placed him in that Realm...our Realms are very different...
I see that the fire needs more fuel, and reach for a branch from the pile, and place it into the flames.
Manu Iti: The Creator of this realm informs me that you too are a Creation - you also have a Creator. You were not Created by my Creator...he believes that another Creator from his Realm, Created you, and placed you here...now...
I change my seating position and look out at the Starry Void...wondering how my words sound like to Callum. I smile.
Manu Iti: I do not know my friend, how my words sound to you...are they meaningful or gibberish...only you can say. I can only tell you what you asked to know...I cannot speak for where you think you are. Only for where I know you are.
The Ruru: The Fine Art of Not Being Offended...Smoke and Mirrors...
Ah yes - I am reminded by The Ruru as to my tricks of illusion...
Manu Iti: I have a confession to make ... I have used sleight of hand...I did not really eat that Jam Beetle...I just wanted you to think that I had! I dear say, it was a response to the shock of thinking I was seeing you, which had me distracting myself through practical joking...
...Please, forgive me my deceit!
The Ruru: That Is An Order
I turn to The Ruru...he is right of course...
Manu Iti: I don't mean to demand your forgiveness...but am asking for it from you...
Last edited by William on Wed Aug 14, 2019 4:33 am, edited 1 time in total.
Manu Iti's response and actions are still a little strange to me. The fire causes shadows to dance back and forth across his face. I look down at my hands and then Manu Iti asks for forgiveness for his practical joke.
Callum: Of course you can have my forgiveness. Now, as to what you have said, much of it is strange to me. I think I understand it, but I just see no reason to think it is the truth. You definitely seem convinced of its truth. I would love to know why you are so convinced. You said you grew up in a Christian tradition. Why have you left that one...or perhaps "left" is not the right word; I'm not sure what word you would feel most appropriate...and come to these beliefs?
The wood in the fire snaps loudly, startling me as I was not paying attention to it.
Callum agrees to forgive me. This is a good thing, because forgiveness is the main subject of our present conversation.
I reach for the small Pounamu carving hanging from my Staff. It is spiral in shape and feels smooth and cool to the touch. It represents the never-ending-non-beginning, reflecting the Source of The Universe of Wholeness...
The Ruru: Positive Feedback
I understand what The Ruru implies...it is a two-way thing...
Manu Iti: Bless you, dear Callum. Forgiveness is always the way over any obstacle...
I ponder on how to best answer Callums' forthright question.
The Ruru: Letting Go An opportunity to commune Magic Doc
I ponder upon the Ruru's advice.
The Ruru: - Music - A Jump Ahead
Manu Iti: Fair enough!
I turn to the direction of Callum's voice.
Manu Iti: I appreciate your question and why you feel the need to ask it of me Callum. For now, The Ruru advises me to keep the answer to myself.
I am thinking that those answers will come through to you in due course.
I pause and the fragrance of burning Birch-wood etches itself into my mind.
Manu Iti: What I would like to ask you, as a matter of interest to me regarding our situation and what I have told you...to do with The Blank Slate Event...
That smell is so wonderful...distractedly so...
Manu Iti:...It is important to me to know from you, what it is that you are seeing.
I can describe how I saw you...but I have doubts in that.
I decide to remove the Pounamu carving hanging from my Staff, and rise up so I can reach the binding, to undo it...
Manu Iti:...I do not believe what I think I saw is how you actually see yourself.
The Ruru: Incredible Variants Mego Agenda ... As we do from time/space to time/space...
I wonder at The Ruru's reference to plastic Fantasy Toy-Makers... it brings a smile to my face...
Manu Iti: What I would like to ask you is a simple question concerning this doubt I have...
I clear my throat.
Manu Iti: As I told you - I cannot see you now, and doubt I was seeing you before...but I wonder if you would mind my asking ... can you see me?
After some time and various words, Manu Iti asks if I can see him. My eyes narrow as I see his shadowy face and I tilt my head slightly to the right. My thought briefly goes back to my mother, as she always loved that tilt in my head. She says it was the result of me breaking my collarbone during childbirth. New environments can have their difficulties.
Callum: I certainly respect your desire to keep the answer to yourself. It may be wisdom in a way I cannot see. I do not know what you mean when you ask if I can see you. The night fire casts a shadowy dance across your face and I can catch it better at some times than others, but I doubt that is what you are asking.
I lick my lips and finger my moustache, then run my hand down the outside of my beard. The owl still remains, I figure it is a pet-of-sorts of Manu Iti's, although I doubt he seeks to domesticate it.
I am perplexed at Callum's confusion regarding my question to him. He appears to see something he thinks is me but offers no particular description.
I decide to try another approach.
Manu Iti: Can you describe what I look like to you, Callum?
I decide also to add;
Manu Iti: I am not certain, but think that how I saw you...you are a male Human, about six foot, slim build, dark complexion. You are wearing heavy grayish trousers, and a blue woolen bush jacket. You are clean shaven, and your hair is black and quite long at the back...I don't know how accurate my memory of how I saw you, is...
I end it there. I am glad at least that there is no sound of concern in Callum's voice. He seems to be handling what I have shared with him, well enough.
I hear a distinct plop of water in the pond 50 yards away.
King Frog is on the prowl...
So, Manu Iti does mean a physical description. Unsure of why this is important, I'm interested to see where the conversation goes.
Callum: You do not look much different than me. You are a bit taller, with a stronger build, and lighter skin. You've get a red shirt on, a good beard that is a bit wild looking in the light of the fire, and some tousled hair that is starting to grey. Your face is weathered a bit. I'm sure it speaks of some amazing stories that I haven't had the pleasure of hearing yet.
After hearing Callum's reply, I understand that he doesn't really see me as I see myself.
He too, is 'filling in the blanks' as I had done - only without coming to that realization.
Smiling at the revelation, I speak.
Manu Iti: Thank you for your answer Callum. It is as I expected.
I pause, wondering now as to how to proceed.
The Ruru: The Truth is irresistible once realized
Manu Iti: The struggle is in the realizing...
It appears Callum, that this place you find yourself in, is also somewhat of a creation of your Creator...or at least...that is to say...your Creator has given you the ability to see me in some form...but - from your description, it is not my true form which you are seeing. Or perhaps, rather, ...the way you are seeing my form is not how I see my form...
No doubt you have a memory of how you got here...to this place. That too is most likely fabricated in order to enable as smooth a transition as possible.
What appears to happen, is that we each have overlapping memories with our creators, and this can give us the impression that we are that which created us. In part, this is true, because we are both created with a specific task to perform - a function which cannot be performed any other way. But even so, we are unique...because we are not our creators, as our creators are in their own universe, and my creator created this universe and our creators placed each of us within it.
My Creator sees me as a Character in a story...I dear say this is also the case with your creator ... and this interaction we are having is all part of that unfolding story.
Inasmuch as I am viewed as a character in a story, I am also viewed as real, because my creator believes that what he creates, becomes real...not in his universe, but in the universe he created for me to exist in.
That is the place you now find yourself, if you can believe such a thing...
The Ruru: AQAL
Make It Up AS You Go Along
Room to Explore
Reason.
Manu Iti still seems quite confident in the truth of his response. I'm unsure if his words are more like the wood sitting next to the fire, something I can grab on to, or the flames that rise from those logs placed into a dying fire. I see the flame die out on one end of an outside log. It is now glowing. I ponder how a open space is not always the best way to get what is needed, just like spreading out a fire will kill it.
Callum: If that is true, how would either of us know that? Again, we are back to why one should believe what you are claiming. But, as you said, the answers I need may come in due course.
[/center]
