This Side of the Gate
Excerpts
The Champ
“Every age produces its heroic figures, those who transcend the benchmark of past accomplishment, attaining heights that so inspire the imagination of the society in which they live that they are forever immortalized. Every athlete aspires to such greatness, but only a few realize the fulfillment of their dreams.”
The Egyptian Landowner
“Death need not be a tragedy. Almost everybody is greeted by friends and family the moment they pass through the gate; however, it’s not unusual for the deceased to ignore their pleas and refuse to step into the Light. So when your loved ones arrive, it generally means only one thing. The most sensible course of action is to trust the people that you love.”
The Administrator
“Given a moment’s reflection, perhaps you would agree that life is not unlike a gold mine, ever holding the promise of hidden treasure concealed within a maze of possibilities. And so it was that a rare type of gold was unexpectedly struck in the mine. It was found at the very bottom of the most unlikely shaft, and it was found in the person of the fallen Administrator. He had been a tyrant when saddled with privilege, but as a mineworker he became an altogether different sort of man.”
The Warrior
“The specter of death offers everyone the opportunity to examine the past, to take a fresh look at what’s truly important in life. Those fortunate souls who take advantage of that opportunity invariably transition to the other side of the gate ready and able to make the most of their afterlife experience. Truly, death sometimes ushers in the night, but more often than not it announces the dawning of a new day.”
The General
“According to those who judged him cold and ruthless, the General’s worst attribute was his apparent indifference to the loss of life. They had to acknowledge that he mourned for the dead and attended to the wounded, that he said all the right things, but only after the battle was long over. Both during and immediately after a fight he was like a man possessed, not by demons, although that was certainly a possibility, but by a caveman mentality that waged war for the sake of brutality.”
The Major
“Fear arrived without warning, camouflaged like it was by the taste of victory upon his tongue. It entered through the solar plexus, but quickly took possession of his facial features, announcing its presence for all to see. Some thought it pain, but the veterans knew the look, and understood what it was that had struck such a pose upon the Major’s face. He was paralyzed from the waist down. The possibility, even though remote, that he might survive, not as a whole man, but as an invalid, terrified the Major. Death was his only hope. Many a soldier has welcomed an honorable death, but rare is he who blithely accepts the incapacitating wound.”
John P. Johnston holds a Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Washington. His first novel, This Side of the Gate, was published by AuthorHouse in October, 2005. In February, 2006 John appeared on Contact Talk Radio, The Sixth Sense, with Alan and Margaret McElroy. In 2006 Planet Starz – Mystic Living Today published an online interview and book review, and continues to publish articles from the author’s Ancient Wisdom Series. In September, 2006 John was interviewed by Daniel Ott, host of The Edge. After 25 years in the field of corrections, John is now retired and writing fulltime. He lives in the Pacific Northwest with his lovely wife – his constant companion and chief editor. John is an avid reader in the areas of psychology, philosophy, and metaphysics.
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