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Jenny was dreaming. She was sure of that. And she was pretty sure that this was ok with her. She didn’t remember why, but she knew that waking would be painful and she wasn’t ready for that.
She was in a beautiful garden. It was still, without a breeze or sound. The leaves on the soaring, ancient trees that surrounded it didn’t stir. She could imagine birds or forest animals but saw no sign of anything like that. She made a slow turn on the spot, taking in the perimeter of trees and foliage. This garden was huge, like the garden she had visited once in Victoria, Canada. And it was meticulously kept, but not stuffy. There were few straight lines. The path that wound here and there throughout was formed by edges of aromatic herbs and low-growing flowers.
She walked for a while, simply enjoying the peace of the place, not thinking, not wondering; just being in that moment. She had a feeling something momentous was about to happen, but she couldn’t fathom what that might be. Her mind was adrift, completely out of touch with any kind of reality.
She passed a grouping of lilac bushes taller than her head and inhaled the sweet smell. They reminded her of...what? The lilacs were of every shade from pale white to pink to lavender and even a deep purple that was almost black.
As she rounded the lilacs, a small clearing came into view. There were steppingstones, inlaid with brightly colored polished stones, rounded like those you might find in a riverbed. The path of stones led around a small clear pool of water a dozen paces across. Why did the thought of a clear pool now bring her such a feeling of sadness and regret? Near the pool, seated on a small stone bench was the person she had once seen in this place, what seemed like ages ago.
The woman stood. She wore a simple dark teal tunic, embroidered with flowers around the neckline, and a flowing brown skirt. Her long brown hair glinted with honey-colored highlights and her deep green eyes were warm and kind. She held out both hands to Jenny with a sweet smile.
It came to Jenny. She remembered this woman. “Miriha?” she asked in wonder. “Now I know this is a dream.” Jenny grasped her outstretched hands and was pulled into a warm hug.
“Yes, my dear Jenny. You are dreaming, and yet, this is as real as anything you will know in your life. Come and sit and let me give you a gift. You have a very long road yet before you and I am afraid it will be rocky, often dark and, yes; even painful, but not always and not forever. You have many loving friends and family who will support you and give you the strength you need to complete your part.”
From a pocket hidden in the folds of her skirt she drew out an interesting box about the size of a small matchbox. It was made of silver or maybe platinum? Inset into the lid of the box were tiny jewels of indefinable colors, similar to a crystal a friend had once given to her to hang in a window. Those colors shifted in relationship to the light around them.
Miriha touched a small button on the top of the box. The box didn’t open, but it began to sing. Music unlike anything Jenny had ever experienced wafted out of the little box. But it wasn’t just music. Listening to it formed pictures in her head. She didn’t really understand them, but they were interesting. Random scenes, some she recognized and some she didn’t rotated through her mind as if viewing multiple video screens all in the same room.
“Miriha, what is this? It is beautiful and I am sure precious. But I know enough of you to know you don’t just give gifts for entertainment or without purpose. What are we experiencing here?”
“Insightful as usual, Jenny,” Miriha said, delight showing in the lights of her green eyes. “This is a weapon for your arsenal, although it will not directly harm anyone. As you attune yourself to it, it will begin to show you things that will be useful to you. This takes time and practice. You can use this both in the waking world and in your mental exercises.
The images and the music are transmitted directly to your mind. You cannot control the images, but each image has meaning and may help you to sort through your options quickly. Often the images seem random, but as you gain experience with the quibox, you will find yourself putting the images together more and more intuitively. The images will not tell you what to do. They will allow you to see more clearly the reality of the choices before you.
There is nothing magical or mystical about this. It simply shows you images created by things you may have only noticed subconsciously and allows your mind to extrapolate the patterns which will show you possibilities. It does not predict the future, nor will it give you answers. You will learn to interpret the series of images and use the information to form your own conclusions.
You were not ready for this before, or I would have given it to you sooner. Even now, it may not feel immediately useful, but I promise you, as you continue to practice with it and give it time and attention when you are able to spare it, it will expand your ability to choose well.
Choice, after all, is the greatest power of any being and to make the best choices, you need to have good information to base them on. This is why those who would restrict the reasonable exercise of choice are considered truly evil. They not only restrict choices; they restrict the availability of good information that is necessary to make good choices in the first place.
The right to choose is not to be confused with the necessary laws and guides that are put into place in any developing culture. But growth only can occur when we are allowed to choose our paths and the twists and turns that occur on our journey. I have always believed this to be true, but it is only when I achieved this level in my progression that I realized how vital it is to the development of the mind and heart and the eventual ongoing happiness of each soul.”
She touched the button on the box and the sweet ambient music ceased and the images faded.
“I don’t know what to say, Miriha.”
Miriha extended the tiny box to Jenny and Jenny took it from her, holding it and feeling the weight of it in her hand before stowing it without thinking into her MDP. She often forgot about the wonder she had first felt when she discovered the MDP and what it could do. It had become a tool that she honestly took for granted most of the time. Since the scientists of the Alliance had created the flesh-colored bands that camouflaged the MDPs so effectively, she didn’t even have a visual to remind her that it was there.
And here it was in her dream. Was it a dream?
Jenny sighed. She looked into Miriha’s eyes, so understanding and so empathetic. If anyone knew and understood what Jenny was dealing with, it was Miriha, as she had been the Gatekeeper before her death. Her death; Jenny had to ask.
“Miriha, how is this done? I know I asked you this before, but I still don’t think I understand. Aren’t you, well...dead?”
“That word is such a misnomer, Jenny. Although it is true the physical form of my previous state was destroyed, which happens soon or late, I am and always have been Miriha. Before I took on the tangible humanoid state I was blessed to experience, I was still me. I have since shed that form and I am still me. When I have accomplished what I must do to progress, I will achieve a yet more glorified form and yet I will still be who I am.
You, the person who is Jenny, are not defined by the boundaries of your current mortal state. You always have been. You always will be yourself.
The stage you are experiencing at this time is vital to your movement forward in your progression. The things you do, the choices you make, they matter to you and to those whom you are able to influence for good.
I cannot make it much clearer than that, nor is it my place to be more specific. I can see so much more than I ever could before my transformation. But I cannot see all things or know all things. I only hope to guide you. Do you understand?”
Jenny nodded. “I think so, but I’m sure I will understand more as I go. You have been so kind and generous. Will I remember this when I awake?”
“Perhaps not at first, Jenny, for such is the nature of dreams, but this isn’t a regular dream and you are not a regular person. When you do remember, remember this: You are loved, and you are so much more than you realize. And now I must go, and you must return.”
And blackness enveloped Jenny again for a time.
