Earthborn, Part Iv

...I didn’t know what I expected then, was I ungrateful to say such a thing here in Heaven, the grand home of the King? Instead a knowing look came to both men, Philippe took a breath, and then said, “My friend, I had just such thoughts, back when I had died, like you I wondered, was it all a lie? But I say there are real advantages to those who learned from the Tree of Knowledge, that Heaven-born will always be denied. “They never will really comprehend good, to them goodness is just the way things are, they’ve never known evil, or felt its scars, they can’t appreciate things as they should, it never really will be understood. They cannot value choosing to do right, it’s not something they’ve ever faced in life, in a real way, they are somewhat like kids, not because of anything that they did, but with no darkness, who can love the light? “They know paradise, but do ask yourself does God himself know that evil exists? And like you does he not know that it persists? That unopposed it can drag you to hell? And did we not choose to fight it as well? He declares we were made in his likeness, but the Heaven-born are denied all this, they cannot know God the way that we do, because like Him, we are able to choose, we are able to take up His great test. “That would be His gift to people like us, to understand evil’s force too fully, to chose to defy it, unbound and free, to see the sense in all His holy laws, and like Him, to freely take up the cause. They know no pain, they have been spared the rod, which is why we remain closer to God, the price paid for never facing the sword is not comprehending God’s true rewards, we’ve made journeys that they can never trod.” At this Ras just shrugged, “He says it better, But when He comes around, we never know. For now I think it is time that we go To your cottage out there on the heather. Your wife’s already there, go and get her.” In all of this time I had not conceived that my late wife was here, waiting patiently, and to find her their… like me, young again… we may have created some Heaven-born then, I guess that was just how things had to be.