A Random Encounter
Andrew was taking a stroll through a forest on one of his rare day offs. The weather was bright and sunny but had a cool breeze blowing. It was so nice out the angel of death didn't even need a jacket as he walked along a dirt path. Andrew wasn't sure where in the world he was but that wasn't important. He was just enjoying the sights, watching the flowers and trees bloom.
The creations God made every day were always so beautiful and amazed Andrew. The sky was so blue it was like an endless ocean. There were some clouds but they weren't enough to block out the sun and rain on this nice, somewhat breezy day.
The grass along both sides of the trail was the fullest green, grass could ever be. A young child could run along barefoot and not worry about anything sharp or prickly stabbing at its feet.
Passing some trees, Andrew came to a gentle creek. The water was so clear he could see the fish swimming around. They were the strangest fish he'd ever seen but the angel never questioned the Father's creations.
Andrew stopped, spotting a nice flat rock at his feet. It looked perfect for skipping so he reached down and picked the rock up. Balancing the weight in his hand, Andrew faced the creek and winded his right hand back, flicking his wrist so the rock skipped along the water. The rock skipped a few times before plummeting straight down in the water with a splash.
He smiled and looked around at his surroundings. Breathing in through his nose, Andrew let it out through his mouth, smiling at the wonderful scenery. What caught his attention took the angel by surprise.
Out of the corner of his eye, Andrew caught a glimpse of yellow. He looked over and saw a small, furry mouse-looking creature with a lightning bolt-shaped tail, red stripes on its back, red cheeks, and black tips on the end of its ears. It was lapping up water with its tongue from the creek. Andrew had never seen anything like it.
Squatting down, Andrew tried getting its attention. "Hey there," he greeted the mouse with a gentle smile.
The yellow mouse stopped drinking to look over in Andrew's direction. It tilted its head, curious. "Pika?" it said.
Pika? Andrew had never heard a mouse make that kind of noise. Did the Father make a new kind of species and this was the first of its kind? "I won't hurt you," he assured it. "Are you friendly?"
The mouse took a small step towards the angel but didn't take another step more.
"Are you hungry?" Andrew pulled a wrapped up sandwich from his pocket, smiling up towards heaven. God always provides when the time is right. He unwrapped the sandwich and tore off a bite, holding it out towards the little, yellow mouse, leaning his other arm on his left knee.
The little, yellow mouse sniffed at the air in the direction of the sandwich, its eyes closed. When it opened them, the mouse slowly and cautiously made its way towards Andrew until it was close to his hand. The mouse then stood up onto its hind feet and took the bite to nibble on it. Once it finished the whole bite, the mouse smiled, wide.
"Pi ka chu!" it said, happily with stars in its eyes.
Andrew smiled. "You like it, huh? How about another?" He then tore off another bite and offered it to the mouse.
While the mouse was nibbling on the sandwich bite, Andrew reached out a hand and tried to pet it, being as gentle as possible, at a slow but steady pace. The mouse noticed and shut its eyes tight, tensing up but once it felt the angel's gentle touch, it loosened up and leaned into his hand.
"You're a cute one," Andrew told the mouse. "Do you have a name?"
"Pi," the mouse nodded up at him, "pika pi Pikachu."
"Your name is Pikachu?" he asked.
"Pi," it nodded again.
"Never seen or heard of you before. God must have made you, specially."
The mouse, Pikachu tilted its head once again, curious. "Pika pikachu?" it asked.
"Who's God, you ask?" Andrew repeated.
It nodded.
"God created you, just like He created the world, and He loves you, very much," he explained. "He's with us, right now, watching over us from heaven."
Pikachu looked at the sky just as a tan, oversized bird with a pink crown on its head, with pink and yellow tail feathers, flew overhead. "Piiiii-kaaaa!" it pointed up at the bird, excitedly.
Andrew looked up at what Pikachu was pointing at. "No, that's just an ordinary bird God also created. God is even higher than that bird can ever fly. We can't see Him but He can see us."
Pikachu grew even more interested. He leaped up onto Andrew's left shoulder and stood on all four legs again, smiling at the angel who offered it another bite of his sandwich.
Andrew stood up straight, smiling up at Pikachu. "Tess and Monica would love to meet you," he said and started walking again.
The bird that flew overhead perched on a high branch, watching as Andrew disappeared, along with Pikachu. There was a beautiful flash of white and the bird-like creature transformed into a small, white dove before taking flight once again into the horizon.