Journey to Paradise

Lilia approached the end of her life on earth. She had no one remaining to watch her die. Her mother and father had passed on long ago, and her husband had died a few years earlier. Her breaths labored, but she felt no agony in her spirit. She didn't need to worry about her past anymore. She knew unconsciousness was approaching, but she didn't struggle to stay alert. She would relent to death when the time came.

Lilia knew she had made mistakes. She wished she could go back and fix the many wrongs she had committed that affected others' lives. She also wished that she could return to her beloved Kauai one more time before she died, but that was not to be. The doctors told her she might have a few months to live. Doctors always said things like that to give the patient hope. Lilia didn't have to worry about hope because she knew that God had built eternity into the heart of man by giving the man the desire to live forever.

Lilia knew she wasn't going to live forever, not on this earth. She hoped that she would close her eyes and go into a coma, so that when her breathing slowed, she didn't have to worry about the suddenness of life being over. That is the way it was with her father. He didn't suffer, but simply faded away. Lilia was definitely failing, but she thought to herself, "I'm just going to close my eyes and think about my life."

Lilia saw the beautiful palm trees, and heard the swishing of their branches in the gentle trade winds. She pictured her island with its lush tropical flowers, trees, and plants growing almost everywhere. She smelled the fragrant seedpods of the mokihana, the flower of Kauai. She imagined the mokihana strung into a lei necklace with some maile leaves, and felt it sitting gently on her skin. She envisioned the Fern Grotto, up the Wailua River, at the mouth of a lava cave. The ferns and philodendrons glistened in the sunshine after a rainfall. Lilia imagined and smelled the wild ginger and hibiscus.

Lilia revisited the place where the banana plants grew wild alongside the road to Poipu. She sat underneath the enormous majestic coconut palms at the Coco Palms Resort, palms that her grandfather had planted many years before. Lilia sat on the veranda of their family home in Wailua. She had loved living in Wailua's rural, down-to-earth atmosphere. She smelled the sugar cane fields burning after a harvest, sweet, tangy, and smoky in the wind.

After her death, her sister would throw her ashes into the ocean in Wailua Bay at Lilia's request, and then she would be home forever. Lilia was born in paradise, and she would live in Paradise again soon.

Mourning Doves

From Common Sense: Listening to the Spirit - Coming Out Soon.

Jim and Lilia unsaddled and unbridled all four horses, brushed them down, and released them into the paddock. Lilia leaned on the paddock fence, and gazed thoughtfully at the meadow behind the paddock. It looked golden in the setting sun and perfect like the Garden of Eden. Green leaves reflected gold and it was as if a halo shone over every plant. Two doves lighted on the fence opposite her.

She said, "Look Jim, two doves." The two doves coo-cooed and sang a sad song to each other.

"It's evening. Aren't they morning doves? Why are they here now?" Jim asked with interest.

She looked at him with meaning, "They're not called morning doves Jim, named after the earlier part of the day, but mourning doves, named after the emotion of death."

A moment passed while she stared into space. Jim watched her carefully and knew she had received special knowledge of some kind. Up until now, the day had been perfect, so he didn't ask her, and he didn't want to know.

"Pray for strength Jim, we don't have what it takes to get through life on our own. Remember what it says in John 15:5 ' . . . apart from me you can do nothing.'"

He understood that something portentous had happened. He let it go. He wasn't Lilia and he didn't have the desire to know of the future or anything other than right now. He tried to distract her with his affection and love, and she let him. She also understood that her knowing couldn't change anything, so she let him wrap her in his arms. They most certainly had their moments of passion, but this wasn't one of them. It was a time of contentment in perfect peace with each other and their surroundings. They listened to the birds sing their last song, and then to the chorus of crickets and frogs. It relaxed them both so much just leaning on each other that they didn't want to lose the moment, and they let it be.

Lilia sighed, and turned to kiss Jim softly. He said with quiet peace, "It's been a real nice day honey. I'd better go home. I love you." He kissed her so sweetly that Lilia heard the singing of angels. They surrounded the couple and poured out a literal chorus of melodic harmony. He ended the kiss and gazed at her carefully.

"Jim, do you hear the chorus of angels singing?" she peered up at him with sincerity and awe.

"No honey, I don't," he replied uncertainly.

"They're celebrating something.The music makes our music on earth sound like the banging of cans together. It is perfect bliss," she said as she hugged him.

He hugged her back, kissed her on the forehead, and then gently caressed her lips with his. He said, "I wish every day could be like today."

"I do too, my Jim." He held her hand extended out and said, "I guess I should go," even though he didn't want to leave.

"Good night Jim, I love you," she cooed. He turned and walked to his truck. He felt full of peace, love, and God's Light.

If She Can Ride the Horse, She Can Have Him

Jacob parked his truck, and greeted Paul. He looked on with fear at the size of the horse. The deal his good friend had made him was simple: if eleven-year-old Lilia could ride the horse, she could have him. King had belonged to Kate, who was fearful of the enormous horse, and didn't ride him. Until today, King had gone un-ridden for over five years.

Paul spied the tentative expression on Jacob's face. "Come on, Jacob, Lilia knows how to ride better than almost everyone we know. Give her a chance. I don't want to have to feed this hay-bag for another five years!"

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Jacob asked his daughter with concern.

Lilia replied with exasperation, "Yes! Come on, Dad, I'm not some puny kid. I'm a monster according to some of the boys in my class. King and I were meant to be together!" That was the comment that took Jacob down.

"Okay, Lilia, I give in," Jacob replied.

"Goody, let's get King ready!" Lilia squalled. Paul brought out the saddle. Jacob held King's halter to keep him quiet for the saddling, but King danced around uncontrollably when he smelled Jacob's fear. Lilia could tell too.

"Dad, let me hold him. King needs to get used to me." Lilia didn't give her dad a chance to respond. She calmly walked over to King, took the reins, and started to purr to him, "You magnificent beauty, you handsome sweet boy, you are going to be mine, and come to live with me." She took a carrot out of her back pocket and gave it to him. She remembered to keep her hand flat, so that King wouldn't bite her fingers inadvertently. King gazed at Lilia with his sensitive big brown eyes, and nuzzled her for more.

"You'll get more handsome after we've been out for a little ride." King forgot that Paul was saddling him, he was so mesmerized with Lilia. She patted him on the neck and soothed him with more cooing, and then gently scratched the neck area under the mane. Lilia remembered what her grandpa had said, that if people acted excited, animals did too. If a person remained calm, the animals responded in kind. She knew that her grandpa was always right.


"Well then, Paul, would you hold King while Lilia climbs on?" Jacob asked.

Paul didn't have a chance to answer. Lilia wailed, "If he's going to be my horse, I have to be able to get up on him myself!" Paul smirked. Jacob felt dusted. He wondered where Lilia had acquired her confidence with large animals.

Paul warned, "We'd better stand back and give them some space. We don't want to spook King."

Lilia poured sweet honey words from her mouth to the animal as she took the reins, held the horn, and reached her foot up to the high stirrup. King was rearing to go! He danced in quick circles in anticipation of the ride. Lilia hurriedly threw her right leg over the saddle and settled the balls of her feet in the stirrups before he lost her. King clenched the bit in his mouth, and started to gallop. Lilia pulled hard on the left rein to dislodge the bit from his teeth.

"Okay big boy, let's go for a run." Lilia didn't have to encourage King with her knees because he took off like a racehorse out of the starting gate. He extended his neck out in front of him and blasted forward. They circled the pasture once, twice, three times, settled into a canter, and then a rack. A rack is a gait smoother than a trot where the horse's front feet move as in a slow gallop while the back feet move as in a trot or pace. It was a good sign that the horse was skilled.

Lilia purred, "Good boy," and leaned down to rub his neck. She knew not to pull up on the reins too abruptly to stop him. Her grandpa had told her that some horses had "built-in hydraulic brakes" for roping cattle. Since Lilia didn't know what this horse would do, he had cautioned her, "Ease him up after your ride, nice and slow."

Lilia gently pulled on the reins. It took some distance for the enormous, long-legged horse to slow down. He whinnied with pleasure, snorted, and turned and glanced at Lilia as if to say, "Where's my carrot?" Lilia read his eyes, and pulled the carrot out of her pocket. It was in that very moment that the two became a team.

Jacob and Paul regarded the ride with wonderment and with mixed fear and envy. They wondered how children learned to be so brave.

Paul turned to Jacob and retorted, "Well, it looks like you better get another job to help pay for all that hay and oats that giant is going to eat! You only live about four miles from here. Why not let Lilia ride him home right now?"

"I know when my goose has been cooked. Where are the cranberries?" Jacob goaded Paul.

"You can have all the oats and hay that I have in the barn. I'll help you load it up on your pickup," Paul replied as he smiled gainfully.

"I need sweet potatoes too," Jacob teased his friend.

"You can have the saddle and the gear, along with the horse. What more do you want, payment on your monthly mortgage?" Paul derided with laughter.

Jacob laughed too and said, "Okay, okay, a deal is a deal."