Heaven

I have visited this place before, but have never been here as myself. This body feels strange to me, as if it is intruding on a beautiful, life changing event. But still, it walks down this dirt road with me, hair silently blowing through the air. We walk with purpose, clearly both intent on our mission. We are searching, and nothing will be the same until our destination is found.

The trees cry beside us, their leaves falling ever so silently, and I grieve their loss as if they have fallen from me instead of the statuesque oaks that rise above us. The atmosphere feels damp, and the scent of lingering rain fills our nostrils. Any moment now it will puncture our skies, falling down upon us in a desperate motion to shatter our hopes, and to destroy our vision. But we will prevail.

It feels as it does back hope on the last day of Fall. It's the day that you can sense the last rainfall, and you know that soon that rain will turn to snow. I shiver thinking of this nearby event, hoping we reach our destination before the cold reaches us.

Then suddenly, through a cloud of fallen leaves, we see it. A small cabin stands before us, smoke brewing from the chimney. We smell the warm scent of a home cooked breakfast beckoning us, and already we feel welcome. I examine this new home, from the welcome mat on the porch to the lawn swing I spot in the nearby backyard.. and suddenly, I remember who I am. This is the house I've dreamed of.

Memories flood my mind, filling me, completing me. When my vision is over, the body beside me has disappeared. It is only my soul, and the house that looms before me. But I am not fearful to let go of myself, because I am more complete than ever before. I head to the door.

The door knob feels familiar in my grasp, and I savor this moment, storing it inside for many days in the future. I will remember this moment for the rest of my life... or my death. The door opens and I hear her, the one I have missed for so long. She stands by the stove, cooking. She hums that familiar song, and my heart swells. She sees me, and a smile lights up upon her kind, beautiful face. She hurries to me, arms outstretched. “We have missed you, angel,” she assures me.

Tears of happiness fill my eyes, and they fall from my face as the leaves fall from the trees outside this very front door. “I am home.”