002: Conversations with the Almighty

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

Title: Conversations with the Almighty
Author: Tabitha sl_podcast
Rating: G
Word Count: 304
Prompt: Before
Characters/Pairing (if any): Giles, God
Author's Note: Yes, I'm a Christian but this story is just in good clean fun....

Conversations with the Almighty

 

Giles wasn't sure how long he'd been in heaven. There were no clocks, no one said "in a few minutes" or "there'll be a slight delay." He was vaguely aware that life used to be finite. There was reason to. If you only had a few rocks in your geological collection, you'd know how many there were, but when standing on a beach no one seems to care to count the individual grains of sand.

What he was surprised about was that heaven wasn't the mythos most people on Earth believed it to be. It was a large city. Angels and people were two different species, for lack of a better term. No one played the harp unless they were in the praise band.

Giles was enjoying talking to men like Newton, Galileo and Noah Webster. There was time to discuss things in depth - emotions, the human problem, pain and joy. The library in Heaven was vast and he had all the time he wanted to read.

Of course, there was the most shocking part of all - conversing with God. God wanted to discuss things with Giles. He found it fascinating and looked forward to his conversations. One particular day they were walking by the River that flowed down the center of the city.  Topics had ranged from Jenny Calendar, whom Giles had found almost immediately on his arrival to why God allowed evil to happen. Giles was just about to part ways with God when he said with a smile, "You know, you were wrong about before."

Giles stopped, immediately reaching for his glasses that weren't there. He missed them sometimes, even though 20/20 vision was amazing. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Earth did start out as a paradise. Someone else decided to mess it up."

Comments

[nuchtchas.livejournal.com]

why is it I can not help but picture god as a big cat?

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

MMmm... too much Alice in Wonderland? Maybe it's the "smile".

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

Wow. When you said God was one of the characters, I didn't know what the expect. Cute ending.

And here's where I get fan-girlish. Aw, Giles found Jenny right away. Hee!

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

awwhh thanks! :) I was a bit worried about the content... but it just came to me when I saw the prompt.

hehehe... and the reference to Jenny was VERY purposeful. Some whedon relationships need a happy ending!

[boy-named-susie.livejournal.com]

Great ficlet. I love the part about Giles missing his glasses. Such a Giles thing, I can totally see that.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

thanks! it literally just came to me when I was picturing how Giles would react.... I saw him reaching for glasses, but them not being there.

[scarlettlily.livejournal.com]

Hehe I liked it.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

thanks! I'm glad you did. :)

[hi--there.livejournal.com]

I almost never read fanfic, but this sounded interesting. I'm glad I did.
I love it.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

thanks! :) Glad you liked it.

looked at your profile ...

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

Hi Kev -- 911 dispatcher here, from the Noble County Sheriff's Department (northwest of Fort Wayne). Welcome to my secret world of fanfic writing! You should try more of it, some is as good and often better than what you find on the bookshelves.

Re: looked at your profile ...

[hi--there.livejournal.com]

Yeah, my wife reads fanfic and swears it's better than any of the published novels that are out there (in the Buffyverse).

She's very picky about the fic she reads though. She's got a handful of fanfic authors that she reads constantly that have huge works under their belt.

Re: looked at your profile ...

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

I read all the published Buffyverse novels I can get my hands on, and your wife is right. Like any writing, there's good and bad fanfiction, but at its best it's much better than the published ones, and I can't account for it. Maybe the fanfic writers are just enjoying themselves too much to dive into the unhappy world of selling your material.

I've only posted 16 stories, myself, but in addition to dispatch I've got a part time newspaper writing job and the volunteer fire department (and two daughters!), so I think I can be forgiven for not being too prolific.

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

I'm always fascinated by various efforts to describe Heaven -- as if anyone really knows. I really enjoyed this effort, it was fun and thought provoking.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

This is based (if you couldn't tell) on my faith and the Bible interpretations that my father (who is a pastor) and I have done. Before I geek out about it.. thanks for your comment. :) I'm glad it was thought provoking!

Heaven knows

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

I had a coworker once who was a lay minister, and we used to argue over what Heaven was like. He said it was a place where you don't need chocolate, because you no longer had any earthly desires ... I told him if it didn't have chocolate, I didn't want to go.

But then I realize hell *certainly* wouldn't have any chocolate.

In my Four Friend story, "Buffybot's Secret", there's a moment when Tara says, "There are many mansions in Heaven, Bottie ... who knows? There may even be one for you." I figured I'd get a complaint from somebody about that, but I never did.

Re: Heaven knows

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

There are a LOT of misconceptions about heaven.. but from what the Bible says there's going to be food... so I'm pretty sure chocolate is included. As well as great wine.

If you think about it, God could have created the world senseless (i.e. no colors, no tastes, no imagination)... but he didn't!

And I don't have a problem with Tara saying that.. after all the Bot had consciousness. And what is life if it's not being self-aware... more things to ponder on.

Re: Heaven knows

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

Pondering is good ... it exercises the mind. :-)

I'm not a wine drinker, but I picture Heaven as a place where I can drink unlimited cans of regular Mountain Dew without gaining an ounce.

[wereleopard58.livejournal.com]

Well this was very cool, i have never quite read something like this before and that is a good.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

Awesome, I'm glad you enjoye it

[stretfordditto.livejournal.com]

I want to go to that Heaven (eventually, not right now). All the time to read all the books and interesting peeps to converse with and 20/20 vision. Sounds great! Excellent.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

Yes! Glad you enjoyed

[mygothangel.livejournal.com]

how lovely!

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

thank you :)

[poisontearss.livejournal.com]

Interesting piece. Not something you see everyday, and I mean that ina good way!

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

thanks! :)

[xlivvielockex.livejournal.com]

This is a fantastic, unique, and just great take on the prompt. I really loved everything about this, from the little details like his lack of glasses, to being able to read all he ever wanted, to finding Jenny. This was just a perfect piece. Well done.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

thanks so much for the encouragement! :)

[blueanddollsome.livejournal.com]

I think this is one of the best things you've written. The description of heaven hits just the right note.

Giles stopped, immediately reaching for his glasses that weren't there. He missed them sometimes, even though 20/20 vision was amazing. I loved that detail.

[sl-podcast.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Very high praise.... I'm astonished so many people enjoyed this. I really just wrote it thinking no one else would like it. :)