The Arrival

He walked through the sprawling lawns and was soon in front of the massive double doors. The place reflected serenity and he felt at ease, as he pushed through the doors and walked inside. As he walked up to the only person sitting behind a huge desk, the gentleman looked up and said, “Welcome, I have been waiting for you”. While he looked young, his face reflected wisdom and proficiency at his work, ably supplemented by his long flowing beard that added to his characteristic.
“What place is this? Is this heaven?” He asked.
“Heaven and hell are your earthly ideas with very specific definitions. You see them as antitheses of each other. But remember, nothing ever created by Nature is perfect; and this place is no exception.”
“OK, now that I am here, what next?” Despite the unfamiliar terrain, he felt at ease, with no trepidation at all. Just then, another much younger man walked in through a side door that he had not noticed. “He is my associate and will take you to where you will stay. I will come later and will talk more about that”, the bearded man said, as if to dismiss him.
He hesitated, not sure if he should ask the question that was unnerving him since he arrived here. Before the associate could pull him away, he made an attempt, “Are there other people I knew on earth also here?” The bearded man smiled, “Indeed. Some of them are still here.”
Again, he paused unsure of how to phrase his next query. Feeling his perplexity, the bearded man signaled his associate to stop. He then smiled, the most assuring smile the man had ever witnessed; then offered, “Go ahead. Ask.”
“Well… I just wanted to know if … you know, if someone … is here”.
“You want to know if your wife, who departed the earth thirty years back, is here too.” It was more of an assertion than a question.
The man smiled sheepishly, “Y..Yes, actually.” And quickly added, “Also, if I can see her first, if she is here.”
The bearded man stopped smiling, closed his eyes, but only for a moment. When he opened them again, the same reassuring smile was back. “I don’t see why you can’t. Yes, she is here and you are just in time to meet her. Don’t be too long, there are other sacraments waiting.” He then nodded to the associate to help.
The man felt relieved, as if he could breathe again now. He muttered an incomprehensive gratitude, and turned to the associate with pleading eyes. The fellow held his hand, and motioned him to close his eyes. As he did that, he felt a little lurch, as if someone was pulling him off the ground. As it stopped, he opened his eyes to realize that he was in-front of another door, much smaller but equally ornate. The associate had vanished. Before he could knock, the door was opened from inside, and there she was !!! Just as she was thirty years back. The same smile, the same twinkling bright eyes and the face radiating care and assurance. He felt very old looking at her grace and refinement, and words got stuck on the way out.

The Encounter

“I see you too are here. You have changed over the years. Look much older than I thought. Maybe all the efforts of rearing the children without me are showing up”, she said. Not sure how to react, he just smiled. Finally, after a moment of reticence, he asked, “How have you been? You still look just the same.”
“That is because there are no physical forms here. We are all souls, devoid of the forms we have on earth. Ironically, the body that we pamper all our life has no significance here. Anyway, how are the children?” She enquired.
“Both doing well, settled in their own little worlds. They loved me till my last minute, however they did not need me now. All content on that front, I was praying to be plucked every night. It happened, but wasn’t then and there though. I was in coma for three days after being healthy throughout.” He explained.
“Totally in contrast to me. I suffered earlier, but thankfully my death was instantaneous.” She smiled and said.
“That is one question I have carried with me all my life. You see, I was holding you, helping you to comfort. And then it happened – you were there one second, gone the next. Did you feel it? What happened?” He was glad that finally, after all these years he could ask the question that has haunted him and gave him several sleepless nights all these years.
She smiled again. “As you held me assuringly, I closed my eyes, only to feel the room filled with green light. Then I saw a face, the bearded man you probably met on your way here. ‘Are you ready?’, he asked. I panicked and shook my head. ‘Well, your time is up. What holds you back?’ he asked. And as if reading my mind, he continued, ‘Your children. They will be looked after, I assure you. Your man will nurture them well. Now?’ I nodded, pleased with his answer. ‘In that case, I want it to happen now, while I am in the arms of my man.’ He just waved his hand, and it was all over”.
“You are such a simple soul. Despite all your social context and all the material artefacts we had accumulated, all you longed for was the well-being of our children”. I said heavily.
“Because I was a mother, and that is all a mother should subsist for. Everything else will be antiquated someday.” Then with a pause, she continued, “Both of us had so many dreams to be fulfilled, we had so much to live for and to realize. But in the end, when a woman is left with just one choice to make, she will do just as I did”.
After a moment of pause, I asked “What now? Are we allowed to live together here? Can we again spend hours every day just talking to each other like we did, holding our hands?”
“Too late for that. You see, I am all prepared for my next life on earth. I do not know what it will be, but I am sure I will have no recollection of you or our children after that. That is the destiny of each of our souls; and you will go through this yourself”.
This certainly rattled him up. He wasn’t sure if she herself was. Probably being here all this time, she was prepared for something like this, but he surely wasn’t. The very fact that she hadn’t forgotten him all these years, but will do so moments after they met was quite distressing to him.

The Departure

And just then as if offering a clue, the associate materialized behind him out of nowhere. She stood up and said, “Before we part, let me tell you that it was a very satisfying life we had. You loved me, cared for me and made me feel complete. Maybe I ran out of my desires too soon. Our souls may never meet again, but I pray for a life where someone has a similar influence as you had in my previous life.”
He held her hand firmly in his. Then, unsure of how to react, he patted her hand gently and nodded his head. Her face was full of compassion and kindness. Her touch transmitted cordiality, trying to comfort him. Then she turned and walked out with the associate.
“You too will be out of here next week, for your next life”. He was startled, as noticed the bearded man behind him. “We will meet that morning in my office.” As he started walking towards the door, the man cried, “Wait. Just curious, how come my wife spent 30 years here, while I get just a week?”
“The time you spend here is a factor of what you did on earth in your previous life. All humans are born the same, but you have to transform your life into something better. If you give happiness to others, spread hope and love and make the world a better place, you stay here longer as a recuperation.” The bearded man said.
“But, we have just met after such a long time. Couldn’t you have delayed her departure from here for a few more days?” He asked with a desperation.
The beard smiled again and said, “You see, your wife has a great virtue. Her love is unconditional and selfless. That is her soul. And while I can change people’s physical forms and wipe their memories clean, I cannot change the attributes of a soul. That is how Nature has created you all. I need such people on the earth, so that they can spread this virtue by touching more lives. You have already been blessed by having her in your life, but there are more living beings that need her.”
“So, is it true that I will never see her again?” He asked.
“You should consider yourself lucky that you could see her today, while she was in transit. But what she gave you in that lifetime will last you forever, across multiple lives. You may not have any memory of her in your next life, but your soul has been transformed by her forever. Your soul will carry her augmentation forever.”
The man, feeling proud now, smiled. “Have a good journey to earth. And make more lives easier to live”. He wished her.