The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. Saint Augustine
Peter Shepard was a man that did not like Books or Words, So much so, that he hated them. Shepard was in his late 40s. Black Bushy Beard and Curly Greying Hair. To Shepard, Books were a thing of great Danger, a book could take hold of a man, or grab you by the Brain and squeeze.
The Doctors called it, “paranoid personality disorder”. He was on a lot of medication, alprazolam & diazepam. PAM PAM PAM.
Peter Shepard also had a strong fear of people. Well, he hated them. Shepard could not Trust them, how could he, he had no trust in himself. There was no discriminating! White Black Brown Yellow, Orange, old young, All were the same!
That night In his living room, the Dark Red walls and paintings of sad children crying next to a small dog came alive every night with the fires glow. He would put on his favourite song “Blue Hotel By Chris Isaak” – He quickly grabbed his Books bobbing his head to the music and sat down by his Fire Place. The Books that he picked from the Library were all Fiction. He would scan the pages for a name and as soon as one jumped out he would throw the book in the fire, and he would repeat this act over and over again - Each one never to be read again. He would visualize that person. As Peter Shepard Was a Killer!
No not a real Killer, He could never in “Real Life” End a -Real Life! He would not harm a fly. Although Shepard was not a Murderer he ended many a persons future memory, Robbed someone of words to be heard. A Killer of knowledge you might well say - To Peter Shepard, this was pay back on all the people that rejected him, as out there in the real world there was a face to the names. For once, he was in control, the God, and the Judge.
One book had slipped him by, He picked it up to find it was the Bible “How did this find its way in here? Cannot Remember picking it out.
Oh well in you go, But first I must pick out a name. He scanned the pages,
“There you are, You may be thinking Jesus. Wrong! It was Peter. The Best friend of Jesus.
Well fancy that, He did not give it much thought, But before he could toss it into the fire faces started to appear in the flames, Women children - people of all ages screaming in anguish- Peter started to have what was a panic attack! His head started to shake out of control, Blue Hotel started to speed up - And then Nothing – Silence.
Shepard awoke, he spent the night passed out on his floor. The Bible By his side. That night Shepard knew that he had awoke powers far greater than him, for he was not a high power, but just the same as everybody else. A mortal that had the same. No better and no different.
Shepard returned the Bible back to his local Library. He felt Forgiven. knowing that today he gives back to the world. Cleansed by the fire. He was going to reach out for the first time in his life, In a new kind of way.
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