The Plain of Existence
My name is (was,
depending on when you are reading this) Craig L Sheppard. I was born in
Dearborn, Michigan on July 27, 1963 to Glen Lewis Sheppard and Alice
Jane Lawton Sheppard. This is my story of discovery.
At First, A Glimpse
"The man stood upon the
precipice between the forest and the calm pool of liquid. As he stood,
his gaze went from the mirror like flatness to another standing across
the pond. Momentarily, his gaze was disturbed by small ripples forming
from within the pond. How odd he thought, that the ripples would form
within the pool, and not from some external force acting upon the body
of liquid. His thoughts cleared, and he returned his gaze to the other
that was standing across from him. Unable to see the other, he refocused
and realized the other was gone. He was alone.
He searched the horizon,
but there was nowhere for the other to go. The space was clear as far as
the eyes could see. Behind him, only the forest. He was certain that no
one had made their way past him, and vanished into the forest."
After this microsecond
vision, I was alive again, sitting in my wrecked car, panicking, and
trying to make sense of what just happened on both the physical, and
virtual plane…
Communion
After the automobile accident in 1990, every six months or so, I would revisit the Plain during periods that I originally thought were just a cold or illness.
"For many years, as if
drawn by a force he was unable to articulate, he would return to the
plain, but not realizing it. During times of illness, which seemed to
happen approximately every six months or so, he would be taken back,
forever looking for the other, but never to discover. With each passing
year, he felt himself being pulled into the forest, and with each
moment, it became harder to resist. Each time he would step to the edge,
and each time, the ripples would return. Always from within, never from
without."
A Second Chance
In 1998, I died again,
this time in a surgical ward in Petoskey, Michigan. As I again passed
from the Plain of Humanity to somewhere else, this is what I saw…
"He returned to the
Forest. The Forest beckoned, stronger than he had ever known. Terrified,
he tried to fight it. He looked into the wooded surroundings and saw
only darkness. As he stepped closer than he had ever dared, he heard the
muffled scream from a voice he had heard years before. It was the voice
of the other. He knew it to be true, but was unsure how he came to this
knowledge. He only knew that he must act. Something within him told him
that failure to act now would result in the loss of that which he had
spent the last eight years of life seeking.
He plunged headlong in
the darkness...
As he struggled to
extricate himself from the mud and decomposing life that pulled him
down, he began to see. Everywhere he looked, the remains of the
unfortunate few that had attempted this journey surrounded him. The icy
grip of fear held his neck, ripped at his life, trying to destroy his
resolve. In the distance, he again heard the screams of the other. With
renewed determination, he pressed forward.
In the moments that
followed, he felt the breath being pulled from his spirit. In the
distance, he saw that for which he had spent so many years previous
searching. Still far away, and unable to clearly discern, but there all
the same, was the other. Louder now, the screams came. Frantic, the
voice that filled the sweaty dank air screamed. Screamed with the force
of hell. Absolute terror now filled the veins of the man, yet he knew he
must press on. Still impeding his progress, the vines now reached for
his spirit in an attempt to tear him asunder. Again, the screams of the
other pushed him ever forward.
Gradually, he found the
path ahead less cluttered with the spirits of the broken and the damned.
Maybe, no one has made it this far he thought. For a fleeting moment, he
began to feel success was at hand. For only a fleeting moment. The next
moments would remain forever etched in his psyche. As he stepped on the
brittle ground, the space around him became perfectly silent, and he was
plunged into pitch blackness. Alone, with nothing but the sound of his
racing heart and ragged breathing, the horror was complete. No one had
ever come so far and lived. In his adrenalin induced insanity, he was
certain that death was the reward for taking on the journey he knew he
would always make. Unable to think, he screamed. With the force of all
humanity, he exhaled every last breath mankind had ever known. In the
very next instant, he collapsed, comatose, unbreathing...
Time passed. Minutes.
Hours. Days. In the blink of an eye, life had left the man, and then
returned. He stood. Slowly, he opened his eyes. Light, as though a
thousand suns filled the heavens blinded him. As he fought to regain his
vision, he heard the soft whispers of a voice. A voice that had haunted
him since time began filled his inner ears. It was at that moment he
felt the presence of the other. He shuddered without reserve. Yet, the
terror, forever within his mind, no longer controlled him.
Still blinded by the
incredible light pouring through the trees, he felt a hand gently touch
his face. The voice returned. Who are you? Why have you come? The voice
asked over and over. The man was unable to answer. He had the knowledge,
but was unable to respond. The next moments blurred all reality. Time no
longer existed. His nose filled with the fragrance of jasmine and cedar.
Awash with images of the mirror pool, he struggled to open his eyes
again. The ripples filled his mind. No rationality, only images. The
fragrance, the voice, the soft touch. The man was now a blank slate. All
that had come before he no longer knew. Again, the fragrance, the voice,
the touch...
His eyes were open.
Clarity unlike any ever known filled the man's sight. Before him stood
the other. The other... Who are you? Why are you here? I have been here
for as long as I can remember. Yesterday, I stood in this swamp,
slipping further and further into purgatory. Today, you are here, and I
know I am safe. The light, something I had forgotten, returns. I do not
understand. Help me...
The man stood quietly
before the other. He had no explanation. None that made sense. He
reached for her hand. Slowly, the two walked from the forest. Along the
way, the smell of jasmine and cedar filled the air. As they emerged from
the forest, the man led the other to the pool. Quietly, calmly they
gazed across the mirror like surface together. The ripples which had
drawn him here for his entire life were gone. He turned to the other.
The other smiled, finally understanding.
All that remained were
the two, now one. The pool before them. The forest behind.
Together, they stood upon
the Plain of Existence…"
© Craig L Sheppard