After the Life of James
There’s so much more
James found himself alone, surrounded by a white mist. He could see nothing in any direction.
A being emerged from the mist and approached him. “I am the Guide.”
Confused, James asked where he was. The Guide told him his body had died.
“I’m dead?” asked James. “So, this is the afterlife?”
“As your people call it, yes,” replied the Guide.
“Is this Heaven? Where is everyone else?”
“This is not Heaven. This is where we bring the new to help you transition.”
“So, are you going to take me there, when we’re done here?”
“No,” the Guide said tersely.
Now James was afraid. “You’re taking me to Hell? I don’t understand. What did I do wrong?”
The Guide shook his head in annoyance. “There is no Heaven or Hell. There is only what I’m going to show you.”
James was taken aback. “Why is there an afterlife at all if there’s no Heaven or Hell? What’s the point?”
The Guide let out a long sigh. “Listen, I know what you believed while you were alive, so let me clear some things up for you. There is what you would call God; we call him the Creator. The Creator did create the entire universe. The universe was intentionally created with the capability to establish and sustain life. The Creator did this to raise a species as his own children. You, however, are not a member of that species.”
James was dumbfounded. “Which species are his children then? Apes? Dolphins? Don’t even tell me it’s mice.”
“Look,” the Guide said in frustration. Suddenly James and the Guide were adrift in the cosmos. “Do you see all of those galaxies? Almost every one of them contains what you would call intelligent life. Many contain numerous separate species of intelligent life on multiple planets. The Creator’s children don’t live on your planet. In fact, they don’t even live in your galaxy. You are just one of the many, many species he is not concerned with. Don’t feel bad, he’s not concerned with my species either. He set the universe in motion and hasn’t touched a thing since. Are you starting to understand?”
“Why did he create me in the first place then? What was the point?”
He didn’t create you,” the Guide said. “He created a universe capable of producing and sustaining life. You, and everyone else, are a product of that design.”
“Okay, but why give me a soul then?” James asked in frustration. “Why wasn’t I just a mindless animal?”
“That’s something else your kind has backward. He didn’t create your soul. Souls are a byproduct of the psyche produced by the mind. When a creature reaches a certain intellectual capacity, the different brain functions come together to produce a level of consciousness not seen in other creatures. This consciousness is the soul, and it remains after the body has died.”
James stood or floated, silently. After a moment he asked, “So, what do I do now?”
“That’s up to you.” the Guide said with a hint of relief. “Most like to meet others who’ve died. There’s a place I’ll take you to next where souls can gather. You can speak with anyone. There are no language barriers for you now. Souls all understand each other, just as you and I understand each other now. You can also go most anywhere in the universe, past or present. You won’t be able to interact with anyone or anything, but you can observe. And just like here, you’ll be able to understand any language spoken, written, or otherwise.”
“Can I see the future?” James asked with excitement.
“No.” replied the guide. “While the past and present are available, the future hasn’t been written yet. And no matter where you are in time, it’s important to remember that the present time continues to march on. At some point, the Creator will bring this universe to a close. When that happens it won’t matter when you are observing.”
“What happens then?”
“No one knows.” said the Guide. “In the beginning, the Creator gave us our instructions and we haven’t heard from him since.”
“Do you know where he went?”
“He’s in his galaxy, in the center of the universe. That’s the one place none of us can go.”
“Do souls ever come from there?”
“Never. We believe that’s where his children are but no one’s ever come out and we cannot see in.”
“That doesn’t seem strange to you?” asked James.
The Guide laughed. “After you’ve been here for a while, you’ll probably stop using that word.”
The Guide then took James to where the souls gather. “This place is known as the Forum. Souls from all over the universe come here for respite and dialog. You’ll find most here.”
“Most? Where are the others?”
“Some go out into the universe to explore. While most enjoy rest, some are more inquisitive. As I said before, you can go anywhere past or present.”
“I know I can’t see into the future, but can I see what happened before the Big Bang?”
“Time began with the Big Bang. There is no way to see what was before time,” the Guide said. “And here I must leave you. There are other new to attend to.”
“Thank you for your help,” James said.
“It has been my pleasure,” replied the Guide. “Enjoy your eternity.”
As the Guide vanished, James turned his attention to the Forum. It was brimming with souls. Far more than could be counted. Though they no longer inhabited them, James could see what their bodies had looked like when they’d lived. They were wondrous. Some large, some small. Some he would have found beautiful and others he would have found terrifying when he was alive. Some of their bodies were configured in ways he’d never imagined. But as souls, they were all alike.
He spoke with many at the Forum. They shared stories and insights from their lives. He met some who’d been truly great. There were others, though, who’d done terrible things while they were alive. From this new perspective, however, they could see how wrong they’d been and were sorry for the pain they’d caused. James was reminded of a saying he’d heard while alive: “We judge others by their actions, but judge ourselves by our intentions.” Here he could actually see their intentions. He could see that they were all just like him. In many cases, they’d legitimately believed what they were doing was right. And now they were truly regretful for their actions. Because of this, because everyone’s intentions both past and present had been laid bare, there was no judgment from anyone. The Guide had been wrong; this was heaven.
James spoke at length, with many souls. He never tired of hearing about their lives. In fact, the opposite seemed to happen. The more he learned about the others in the Forum, the more he wanted to learn about them. He didn’t know how long he’d been there. He knew time continued to pass, but souls didn’t experience it in the same way as the living. He didn’t experience fatigue or hunger, or any of the other physical sensations he’d previously associated with the passage of time. And because there were no barriers to communication, souls could converse freely and efficiently. Entire conversations could be had almost instantaneously. The more he learned from and about the other souls, the more his desire to see the history and events of the universe unfold first-hand grew. When his curiosity became too great, he set out to explore on his own.
He started with Earth. It seemed fitting as Earth was where he’d gotten his start. He went back to see the earliest conditions. Then he jumped forward in time to see life begin. He didn’t need to know the moment ahead of time. All he needed to do was think about what he wanted to observe and he’d instantly be transported to the time and place in the universe he needed to be to see it. And he could view it from any perspective imaginable. He could watch the universe as a whole or observe individual particles of matter, and everything in between. It was amazing.
After Earth, he observed the worlds of those he’d met in the Forum. And after those, he focused on everything else. He saw worlds where life had taken hold but never progressed far enough to give birth to souls. He watched as stars were born. He watched as stars died, some in fantastic displays of light and force. He traveled into Black Holes and even witnessed the Big Bang itself.
At last, James came to the point where he couldn’t think of anything else he wanted to see. As he decided to go back to the Forum, he found himself surrounded by light. He was in the presence of the Creator. He’d never seen the Creator before, but somehow he was certain that’s where he was.
“Are you ready to see what’s next, child?” the Creator said.
“I thought I wasn’t one of your children,” James replied meekly.
“Not so. Everyone who has ever existed is my child. But it was important for you to believe that you weren’t.”
“Why?”
“I wanted to see who you’d truly become. I wanted you to behave as if this was all you’d ever have.”
“Is there more?”
“Much more,” said the Creator. “The time has come to bring this iteration of the universe to a close and to begin anew. Those who’ve lived are ready for what comes next.”
“What’s next?”
“There’s so much more beyond what you’ve known up to this point. As children of your species grow up before moving out on their own, now my children are ready to make their way beyond this home. But I have a different path in mind for you, if you’re interested.”
“You don’t want me to move on with the others?”
“You’ve shown something that no other has. You place a higher value on learning than anyone else does. Most are content to never leave the Forum, and those who do aren’t gone for long. You, however, spent very little time there. And you spent the little time you were there learning about your siblings instead of talking about yourself. You then spent your eternity observing everything you could.”
“I never start a universe with an end in mind,” the Creator continued. “I make that decision along the way. After watching you for a while, I decided to give you enough time to see everything, and by my estimate, you have. Was there anything else you wanted to see?”
“No. I was about to go back to the Forum,” James stopped. “Have you started other universes?”
“This was just one in a long line of them. Each a little different from the last. And that brings me to the path I wanted to offer you. Most of your siblings will move on to what comes next, but some will remain with me during the next iteration.”
“You want me to remain with you then?”
“No. In each iteration time marches forward continually, never stopping or changing pace. This is because time itself is a conscious entity, just like you are. I want you to be Time in the next universe. It’s a position I hold in the highest honor.”
James was shocked. He just stared, wide-eyed. Or, he would have, if he’d still had eyes.
“From this position, you’ll be able to observe the next universe in its entirety, from beginning to end. And you’ll be everywhere in the universe all at once. There’s nothing you won’t see. Is that something you’d be interested in?”
“Yes, absolutely!” James said. “I’d be honored.”
“Splendid.” The Creator smiled, “Shall we begin?”
Thank you for reading. For different take on the afterlife: