SHADES OF GREY
Everything is grey in the Land of the Dead.
The Lord of the Dead walks on the grey dusted pathways of the Underworld, making His way among the dead. Some are happy, some are tortured, all blind and deaf, locked in their own minds' cages with only the memories of their past lives to ponder on. No sound, no color, not even a moonbeam breaks the Reign of Dust.
Death walks towards His retreat. Beyond the Ebony Gates lies Death's garden. In here, black roses and hyacinths are frozen into unearthly shapes and cypress trees form a hallway to the Hall of Justice. As he walks through the Gates, a grey cat rushes to greet him. He was once black, and during his last life he died on the stake, burned as a witch's familiar and demon.
Death's bony fingers stroke the cat's back, which purrs loudly in return. He has always loved cats, probably because they have been the only creatures who treat Him with stunning indifference. This one had a story that moved him. His human was a witch all right, but way far from a Devil's disciple. With their dying breaths they both begged the Lord of the Dead to spare the other one in exchange for their souls. Death had no claim on their souls anyway, but their deep affection for each other touched him. So, he adopted the cat while the human moved from one life to the next towards perfection. Cats are perfect right from the beginning...
He sits on a bench under a tall grey Juniper. The cat hops up and lies beside him. For a while, nothing moves and each of them is lost in one's own thoughts. Then, the door of the Hall of Justice opens and Jackal-Headed Keeper of the Gate exits. Death rises to greet Him and to see the new arrivals. But no souls are seen behind Him, as Anubis walks down the hallway.
When they meet, Death sees that the Keeper holds something in His hand. Intrigued, he goes closer. And as the Keeper opens His hand, Death steps back in awe.
Everything was grey in the Land of the Dead. But a sunbeam broke through and brought life in the dust. A small golden bird flies off Anubis' hand and sits on Death's hand. It chirps joyfully, illuminating Hades with his song, casting a rainbow of colors over the void.
The dead rejoice. Inside their sealed shells the little bird's chirping enters like a warm summer breeze, reminding them of springtime mornings and starlight nights and loves long lost, but never forgotten. Its radiant feathers sprinkle fairydust over the Underworld, turning grey to sparkling silver.
"What are you doing here, little one?" wonders Death. His fleshless eyes see beyond the golden feathers. He sees an old, sick little bird, with an ugly scar under its eye and a badly deformed beak. But it has around it an aura that Death's domain could not vanish: the aura of someone loved beyond expression. And this aura gave him golden feathers, a shiny new beak and healed the scar under its eye.
Death takes his feathered and furred friends and withdraws. He takes the little bird inside His House, for the Land of the Dead is grey for a purpose. But every now and then, He lets that golden bird and its mate, who soon joined it, to fly about, filling the Underworld with sound and light. And so the souls of the dead may remember what was once known to all: that death is just the beginning.
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In memory of Birdie, who flew into my life in July 5th 2000 and flew away in August 19th of the same year. All it takes is a heartbeat to love someone eternally, even a humble budgie. He was much loved and is still missed.
A painful reminder that the greatest lessons come in the smallest sizes.
Irrelevant comment: This is an award-winning story (since Summer 2002). For more details email me.