“Joe, Joe, look
here.” The voice came from all around him. He rolled onto his back and settled
into a fitful sleep. What was happening? That voice seemed so real.
“Joe, use your mind’s eyes.” Rosie allowed herself to
take shape; slowly a form appeared in Joe’s dream. She decided to take the male
form of “Hardly”, one of the characters in the game that Joe would start to write
the next day.
Joe
lay still, the snoring evened out as his breathing slowed. He was in the zone;
he could see the shape coalescing in front of him. His logical mind stepped
back, and his heart mind opened. He allowed this new energy permission to be in
his dream.
“Who, huh, what are
you?” Joe addressed the image in his dream.
Rosie almost burst
out laughing, as she imagined what she looked like. Now she would have to speak
with Hardly’s voice; she cleared her throat, and thought “deeper.”
“I
am Hardly. I am a leader. There are many followers. You will create my world.”
“Hardly?
You’re Hardly there.”
“I guess that is how I got my
name.” Rosie nodded.
She
continued, “There is a great myth about destruction and salvation. This myth
will come to pass on the Winter solstice in 2012. You must write a game to
teach the others how to survive. You will have many fans, you will call them
disciples. I shall be their leader”
“Write
a game, yeah, right. Write a game, ok.” Joe rolled over. ”What’s the name?” His
thought stream began to wander. Rosie saw the image of a chocolate ice cream
cone coming into focus. She focused her energy a little keener, and sent out
the message “The Dreamwalker.” Rosie could see him stirring; she quickly
realized that she was no longer in his dream and that he was waking up.
She
had done it. She had travelled back through time and inspired Joe to write his
game, “The Dreamwalker.” Now she understood the name. She was the Dreamwalker,
she was Hardly. She went on deck and sat in the cock-pit of her boat, looking
out into the sky, and wondered what other talents she had acquired that night
out at Boca Grande.
*****
Joe
stirred, he rolled over, he snorted, his eyes opened. He sat bolt upright. He
grabbed a pen and paper and started to write. It was early morning. After
jotting down 3 pages of notes, he lay down again. The ideas swirled in his
brain. There was no way that he could sleep. He sat up again, and grabbed his
phone. He scrolled down the list of contacts until he saw Jake, his partner in
arms, his twin brother, and his best friend. He jabbed at the call button and
waited, listening to the soft purr of the ringing tones. He was making
connections. He was creating. He was on fire.
“Huh!”
the voice was garbled on the other end, it was still early.
“Jake,
come here. I need you!” the classic line; if it was good enough for Alexander
Graham Bell, it was good enough for him. It wasn’t the telephone that he had
invented; it was a discovery. It was taking the telephone to the 5th
dimension. It was being able to walk into someone’s dream, and talk with them.
He was sure that his dream was imaginary; little did he realize.
Joe
made the coffee; he drank the coffee; he paced the floor; he made some more
coffee; he looked at his watch. Twenty minutes. “Jake lives 20 minutes away, he
should be here soon.” he thought.
He went to the desk and looked at
his notes. There was a rambling to them. Could he even decipher the letters,
what was this all about? He only felt the surge of creative excitement. He only
felt the surge, the need, to share this with the rest of him, his brother. He
walked to the window and looked out.
It
was still dark. “Sunrise is late this time of year.” He thought. Then he saw
lights moving on the horizon. He was living at the end of the road to nowhere;
the road to the end of the island. No one came there unless they were selling
something or they were invited. He eagerly watched until Jake’s van appeared
through the mangroves. Joe opened the door and waited. Jake would never believe
this dream.
*****
“Joe,
what’s the idea of waking me in the middle of the night?”
“You aren't going to believe this, but I had a dream.”
“Yeah;
you and Martin Luther King.”
“Well
his dream was a little more difficult to realize than mine. Mine is about the
end of the world.”
“What
are you talking about?” Jake stepped into the RV and looked around. There was
clutter everywhere except on the computer desk. There Joe had perfect order.
There were pieces of paper lined up; Jake walked over and picked up the top
one. “The Dreamwalker, what’s this about?”
“That’s
why I called you. I had this dream.”
“Yea,
we know about that.”
“But
you don’t know about the dream. There was this guy; he called himself Hardy or
Dandy, no Hardly. I thought that was funny because he was hardly there. Anyway,
he said that I would write a game about the end of the world, like apocalypse
kind of thing in December 2012, and that he would be the guide and that, and
that the game would be called Dreamwalker, and that I would have thousands of
fans, maybe millions, and that I would call them disciples.
Jake
sat down, and picked up the empty coffee mug on the table, he looked into it,
and looked back at his brother, “Any more coffee? We got some brain stormin to
do.”
“So
you like the idea?”
“You
betcha!”
*****
Canadian Thanksgiving, Key West October 9, 2006.
“G’ma, are you ready? Why are having
the Jays over for Thanksgiving and it isn’t even near Thanksgiving? That’s
crazy.” Roz was looking out the window, looking for her uncles.
“Yeah, I
know. It’s Thanksgiving in Canada, and that’s where I was living when they were
born. Since I moved here I have been celebrating this Thanksgiving in honor of
my northern home.” G’ma peeked into the BBQ. It was much too hot for roasting a
turkey in the oven. So these turkeys have been roasted in the BBQ.
“Were you
there when momma was born?”
“I
certainly was, that makes you part Canadian and part American; you are a
citizen of North America and the world.”
“Goodie,
we are North Americans, and we have a continent for play.”
“You sure
do.”
Rosie ran
over and jumped onto the chair with Roz. “Hey, get your own continent” Roz
joked. She opened the window and leaned her head out. “Hey, I hear something
outside.” G’ma joined them at the bay window and looked out on to the tropical
street. Two men were locking their bikes to the iron fence. “It’s the Jays,”
the girls danced together.
“Well,
open the door for them.”
The girls
ran to the door, and opened it wide. Joe and Jake climbed the steps and smiled
as they saw the girls there to welcome them. Since G’ma had moved to Key West,
Canadian Thanksgiving had become a usual part of their year. They would gather
at Cary’s house with the family and enjoy turkey, turnip, sweet potatoes,
pumpkin pie and broccoli. Now broccoli isn’t a traditional dish, it just grew
so well in October, that G’ma had to serve it to honor the harvest gods. That
was her tradition.
“Hey
Uncle Joe, Uncle Jake,” sang Rosie and Roslyn as they ran out the door and
jumped into their arms; the sound of twins greeting twins was the sound of
welcome chimes on the front door.
“Come on
in boys. Are you ready for a feast?” G’ma greeted her twin sons with a huge
smile and a warm hug.
“You
betcha Mom,” Jake said as he held the door for everyone to enter. “Is Cary here
this year?”
“He
couldn’t make it back. He called on the satellite phone and apologized. He has
a big charter, and they don’t care about our celebrations, it’s a long week-end
for them.”
They sat
down and devoured the meal. After dinner, they would play games. Tonight the
game was a little different.
”Mom,
tonight I want to play a different game. I am writing a survival guide kind of
game for after the shift in 2012.” Jake said.
“What are
you talking about?”
“You know the
planetary alignment: the alignment with the center of the galaxy on the winter
solstice in 2012; the opening of the portal to the center of the universe, that
kind of stuff.”
“Tell me
more”
“Aren’t
you familiar with the Mayan calendar and all of the disastrous predictions
around the end of that calendar? It’s supposed to be the end of the world.” Joe
explained.
“Yeah,
and Joe is going to write a game to teach people how to survive the
‘apocalypse.’” Jake made quotes in the air.
“Yeah
Mom, and I want your help.” Joe added.
“How can
I help? What can I do?”
“Well,
you lived back in the woods when we were young, and ran the house on mostly
homemade and home grown stuff, so I thought that you might help me get together
a list to start; stuff that everyone will need to get through that first winter
after the crash of civilization.”
“Well,
that’s easy. First you need good seeds; the best that you can get. Then you
need some staples, you know beans and rice, some canned good’s maybe some
salmon, and foods that are non-allergenic; maybe almonds, almond butter.” G’ma
paused in thought. “Why do you need this?”
“I am
going to make like a scavenger hunt, and get everyone who joins the game to get
these things. It might be good just in case the end does really come.”
“Yeah,
He’s going to create a need and I’m going to sell all this stuff to these
chumps.” says Jay.
“Whadda
ya mean chumps?” Joe shot back.
“Yeah,
chumps, anyone who believes this end of the world stuff is a chump. Hell, I
don’t expect it to happen in our life time.” Jay and Joe argued.
“Well
mom, what else will we need?” continued Joe.
“What do
you mean ‘we’?” G’ma felt surprised.
“Well,
we’re gonna need a place to go when the world ends, so I might as well set it
up so that you have a place for us to hide.”
“Really;
and what if I don’t want to play this game?”
“Well, I
thought that when Jay starts making money with my game and your list, that we
would build you a log cabin back on the old homestead.”
“Oh Joe,
that’s too much.”
“Mom, it
isn’t just for you. I want a safe place to hide. I will see about getting you
set up so the family, all of us, have a place, just in case.”
“Joe, you
are a good boy.”
“Ok then,
what else will we need?”
*****
How can I tell you about these boys, the twins I mean. We
thought it was a joke, Joe and Jake, you know Joe the joke and Jake the jerk.
We never said it in front of them, but they seemed to read our minds as they
played out these roles through most of their lives.
Joe, he is, was, has
been yeah, has been a joke, living in that moldy basement writing computer
games – computer games! There was no future in computer games. And he gave them
away! All you had to do was sign up and he would give you a game. He called it
“The Dreamwalker -What to do at the end of the world.” What a joke, the end of
the world, phooey!
Anyway, he got a huge
list of names, he called them disciples. He wrote this ….game, and then he told
these disciples how to play it, and each time that they reached what he called
the sanctuary, they would graduate to a higher level, like: hound, guide,
trainee, referee.
But they kept
playing; they kept getting their friends to play, who would have thought.
- Grace Eliza May,
August 2012.
*****
“Woo-hoo, I did it
Jake, I hit a million disciples” Joe was dancing around in his basement room,
wearing his “Family Guy” T-shirt and faded jeans, Blue tooth stuck on his ear,
sharing his excitement with his brother, “Just today, someone in California
registered. His user id is ‘Crater.’ He is one million.” Joe’s voice was heard
over the phone. Living in a basement, the cell was always cutting out.
Jakes face lit up. He
could see the dollars rolling in. To heck with the end of the world, he was
getting fat selling all the stuff that these disciples bought.
“Great. Now with this flooding in New York, you gotta put
another level into the game, so they can become something like, I don’t know, a
Turtle. You know, they have survived for such a freaking long time. That would
play into the survival theme.”
“Sure, then you could
sell them all scuba gear, right?”
“Good idea, and
rubber rafts, and oars, and raft repair kits, and flares, all kinds of stuff. “
“We’re
gettin rich offa my game.” “Right, and it pays our bills, and we built that log
cabin back in the woods for Gemma.”
“You
better haul ass out there and see if she’s ready for the solstice. I think
she’s taking a bunch of her friends down to the old mine entrance. You gotta
check, see if it’s safe.”
“Yeah,
I was heading out there for the week end. You come too?”
“Nah,
the solstice is too soon, I have to make sure that the disciples are ready, and
know what to do when IT happens.”
“When
was the last time that you went out there?”
“House
warming, 2 years ago.”
“When
was the last time you were out of that basement?”
“Yesterday
I went to Tim’s for a coffee and to get a copy of the paper, so I could see how
they made out in New York. IT’s started you know. Some of the adherents have
been reporting to the game host how their new skills gave them a real
advantage. I need to spend more time fixin it… I need to spend more time” Joe’s
voice trailed off. Jake knew that Joe’s mind had gone back into his virtual
reality, and ended the call.
*****
When Jake drove up to the log cabin,
he could see his grandmother in the garden, raking leaves over the garlic bed. They were doing really
well, and she was making sure to have a great crop in the spring. They had done
miracles with the old homestead. The original house had been abandoned for too
many years to use or repair. The log cabin was perfect. The wood lot had
supplied the logs, and the money gained from the sale of survivalist supplies
had paid for the labor. A big organic garden, lots of wood for heat, a spring
up hill for gravity fed water, a windmill on top of the hill, solar water
heaters, and that old mine over the cliff on the river bank, made this the
perfect spot for the family to have a safety net… a hiding place.
“Hey Mom, need any help in the
garden?”
“Jake, you always turn up just when
the work is done. What great timing you have.” Gemma chuckled.
“I plan it that way.”
“Come on in, dinner’s almost ready.
I know that you love my lasagna.”
“More good timing” Jake chuckled.
Jake was Grace’s favorite, three
sons, and Jake was the most affectionate, the one most like her. He still hasn't settled down, still hasn't given her a grandson. She let that thought
go, there’s time. Still, she has 2 wonderful granddaughters.
Jake came out to see Grace every few
days, making sure that she has everything that she needs, and making sure all
the gadgets still operate, in case…The cabin was a half hour drive from town on
dirt roads most of the way, not much traffic went by here. Not many people knew
that it was here, and most of them were hiding in the woods themselves. The
“Back to the Land” generation had borne a generation ready to hide and defend.
*****
The Dreamwalker - The
Last post – 121220: 6:32 am.
Are you ready? The countdown has begun. In
just a couple of hours the galactic alignment will end the Piscean age and life
as we know it.
Are you ready? Do you have your supplies
stocked in a safe area, safe from marauders, safe where you will find them?
Are you ready? Have you tested your radios?
Do you know how your skip will bounce? Have you shared your intention with your
loved ones?
Are you ready? Have you built a safe zone, a
place to spend the hours before and after the cosmic blast from the center of
the universe?
Most of them believe that this cataclysm will
happen tomorrow night – they have not done the research. They have not played
our game; they know little of Apocalypse 2012 and “The Dreamwalker”
*****
03/18/2013: planning
the solstice party.
The light survivors
celebrate.
The message goes out.
“Good. The snow has covered the
ground, and the windmill is spinning like it wants to fly off. I am warm, the
fire is glowing, and I am safe, the fence is closed: no problems here. How are
things in the city?” Grace asked Joe.
“Not many people out and about. Most
have collapsed. There was no one to guide them. Not enough disciples. They have
all survived, they are communicating on the radios that they bought. They all
have vertical gardens growing with grow lights powered by windmills, just like
you. They have enough rice, canned fish and beans. That was a great list that
you gave me.”
“And you gave me a root cellar and a
great big garden, so I have carrots, potatoes, apples, pickles and canned
pears. Can you make it for the Equinox?”
“I don’t know mom, the gas is gone
and the stations are out. There isn't enough sun to power the electric car to
go as far as your place. I will see if I can borrow some extra batteries to put
in the trailer, and that would mean some extra people. OK?”
“You
know that’s OK My table seats as many people as arrive, even if we have to perform a miracle like the fishes and the loaves, we will
feed as many as show up. It is the beginning of spring. The greens will be on
the table before you know it and the parsnips will be out of the ground, I will
have fresh food, so it is time to empty the root cellar.”
“Well, we don’t have to do that,
maybe feed a few more than our core 3.”
“That would be a very welcome event.
Are that many Lights in town?”
“There are some; and all the other
hidden Lights, back here in the woods. Maybe I could send out a message for a
reunion and ceremony to celebrate Spring.”
“Great idea mom, that would be
great, maybe someone has a lamb.”
“We don’t kill lambs anymore;
they’re too valuable alive, until they are really old, then we get mutton. Do
you like mutton?”
“I don’t know, maybe someone will
bring some to the dinner or feast; is what it is becoming?” asked Joe.
The forgiving Lights, yahoo, we have
made it through the darkest winter in 26,000 years.
We certainly had our trials.
Yup.
OK, you send out your messages, and
I will put it into the game. Anyone who can find the place is invited to a pot
luck dinner on the equinox.
“I will have to put directions on
the radio; is that ok with you?”
“You’re sure that only the Lights
will receive that.”
“Yeah, only Lights are tuning in.
There a bunch of Lights that followed the game enough to be awake now. I thank
God, I made a difference.”
”And thank Jake too.”
“Sure mom.”
“Well, wasn’t he the one who was
instrumental in monetizing the game? Without the supplies that we could buy
back then, we wouldn’t be so well set up now, would we? Say a prayer for Jake.”
“Amen. I still miss him. He really
didn’t believe any of it, did he?”
“I guess not. And maybe he chose to
go out in a burst of energy, with the millions of souls that passed that night.
Earthquakes, tidal waves and hurricanes sent the seas swamping the shores for
oh my goodness. I don’t want to think about it, all those people drowned.”
“But mom, you said it, a surge of
energy. Imagine how it was in heaven, with all those spirits arriving at the
same time. It must have been like the biggest reunion in time and space. What a
party, and no booze required.”
“But, what about those who were
hurt? I think that the seas took care of that. Freezing water, they wouldn’t
have hurt for long, just a few moments and then bliss, being in the line up to
the pearly gate.” “Hey fella, how did you get here?” “I don’t’ remember.”
“Neither do I. Ha ha, what a joke, eh? Getting to the pearly gate and not
remembering. Or do you forget after you get to heaven?”
“Silly boy, go and make your
messages, and I will get on the radio.”
“Later Mom.”
*****
“My, oh my, I sure do miss Jake; he
was such an affectionate boy. Joe is great. I miss the hugs when … sigh…
Message to the Lights... OK.”
Grace
walked to the pigeon coop. The Lights have been raising pigeons for squab for
about 2 years. They have kept the quickest for messages, and trained them to
fly between their homes. This system would be good as long as there were trails
to bring the birds back and grubs to feed them. Nature takes pretty good care
of the grubs, and men take good care of the trails.
There was an intricate network of
trails that look like deer tracks interconnecting the Light’s homes. They would
ride the trails on their horses or mules on a regular basis. They said that
they were riding trails to the others; they were truly avenues of communication
and commerce between the Lights. They could secretly travel from one homestead
to the other without being observed, except when they had to cross the
highways. Then they would put a deer crossing sign, to disguise their trail.
These trails were used to trade goods and pigeons. One trail came to Grace’s
home, one trail that tied her to the rest of those who anticipated the shift,
and chose to hide in the woods, stockpiling enough goods to ensure the survival
of their families. Families that joined together in the mine to chant and sing
and hide underground when the portal to the center of the universe opened, and
the bolt of energy blasted the minds of those on the surface, light and dark.
She attached a message to the pigeon’s
foot: “Equinox pot luck at Grace’s.”
She let the bird fly. She had 3 days
to prepare. She went to the stream and looked for fish.
