The Vivid Netherworld

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A sea serpent, perhaps descended from the four-legged creature that lured Adam and Eve, spoke to me and said:


"Come, the netherworld is actually as blue as your 
most vivid dreams..."


Tikling Island, Matnog, Sorsogon
Own Image. All Rights Reserved.



The snake continued to hiss...


"Dive into the blueness of the sea where you will find the luster of each and every creature of varying colors and shades. You will see them swimming and crawling amongst the most vivacious of corals where a pearl of pinkish hue is hidden. Take it. It's more valuable than your future dream house! It is so precious that it is worth all your sought-after desires and more! Oh, what festive paradise you will have when you find that one pink pearl!"



Temptations abound on this exotic island, as if telling me to liberate myself from the bounds of the earth... To forget work, to forget everything...

And go yonder, to the deepest reefs of the ocean, to the farthest of the islands, to get lost and be forgotten... and wake up on an unknown paradise somewhere in the middle of nowhere...



Suddenly, a whirlwind of thoughts enveloped me. I remembered that sacred vow our Savior has made for us. 

And so, I responded...


"My beloved Creator has something more splendid
in store for me if I follow His holy will...

"I know that He will bring me to a glorious paradise more 
ethereal than your evanescent world...

"My faith will not allow me to succumb even to the sweetest of temptations, 
most tantalizing desires of food, flesh, and finances...

"For my Savior's promise outweighs any and all material gifts you will give me. 
I shall not listen to you, and your crawling shall never cease... 

"Because my Savior's promise amounts to nothing more 
than everlasting peace..."



The snake left and hissed no more.

I knew that a promise that means 'nothing' will turn it away. An 'everything' turned down for 'nothing'? Maybe, but I know that the world beyond our worlds is a paradise of infinite possibilities, a home of ever-growing plants and animals that will stay youthful and happy forever.

It is where our dreams will indeed come true. It is a promise for the Lord loves us. It is love that created this paradise. It is love that molded it and gave it its very essence. It is love that sustains and nourishes it.

It is a paradise where all sin is forgiven, where all regret is forgotten, where all sorrow is forever lost in antiquity.

Only beauty will be seen, molded by the fruits of the Holy Spirit --- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control…

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