Souldier

A letter of warning

Dear Reader,

I must advise you of something very important before you begin this book. Observe my words carefully, as they will enhance your experience and understanding of this novel greatly. Never let them slip from your mind, whether or not you are holding this book in your hands. They may just save your life.

You are not human. No body is human, humans do not exist. 

At least not in the sense that you believe. 

You believe that humans are shallow, finite, individual creatures who battle against the tides of time almost heroically, refusing to be pulled away from their one shot at life. You believe that they dream feverishly about the cloaked man with the scythe or the ‘other side’ or even about a being they refer to as God or the Father. You believe that a human can live only once. 

You are wrong.

Humans are deeper than they can ever imagine. They are infinite and they are never alone. I should know, I’ve met them all. Even you. 

Not in the flesh, though, so do not try to search your memory for my face. You will not find anything, for your eyes never saw me, your hands never touched me and your lips never spoke a word in my direction. The only thing that I touched was your soul. 

Don’t panic, I can promise that when we met, you were completely at peace. You asked me to remove a load from you shoulders and I obliged, or at least I did the best I could. Like every other soul on this planet, you could not be completely freed from your past life. I held all of your love and fear and memories in my hands and could not bring myself to tell you that I could not dispose of it. So I did the only thing I could. I buried it deep within you and sealed it off, so it would not bother you again. 

That is my job, and you were just another customer who needed assistance. I am the Soul Stirrer and it is my duty to prepare all souls for their next life. I paint over the soul as though it were recycled canvas, covering up the previous masterpiece with a fresh layer of chance. I then release the soul and it’s many hidden layers into the world. It will float around until it finds a new body to enter and give life to. It will not be aware of it’s buried layers, it will simply go on believing that it is the first and only layer. It believes it is, as you might describe, humane. 

No one is more aware of the fragile balance this planet hangs in, than I. Of all the souls that I encounter, I see shadows and sunbeams, oceans and mountains, whispers and shouts, books and ballads, winters and summers. But I do not see ‘good’ and ‘evil’.

Because what’s the difference, really?

The souls who frighten me aren’t always ‘evil’. Sometimes, they are what you might call ‘good’, sometimes you could describe them as ‘heroic’. But when they confront me, I cannot help but quake in fear and hastily bury their past lives within them. In cases such as this, I regret to inform you, that I do quite a terrible job. Their essence broths and boils in my hands and as I quickly cover it up, I leave gaps. Some of the souls that leave my company still have shadows of their past lives wrapped around their shoulders. These souls are easily influenced by their peaking layers and many of the characteristics obtained from their past lives are transferred to their next body.

I apologise for my clumsiness, but I assure you that this isn’t a regular occurrence.

I almost enjoy my job. Like a mother giving birth to her child, I am instantly attached to each soul that I come across. Some souls I see regularly. These souls have a preference for shorter more vibrant lives. They jump into the bodies of humans and dragonflies and daisies, relishing in the excitement of their short infinities before approaching me again, ready for another go. Other souls, have grown tired and prefer to spend their time wrapped in the wood of ancient trees or at the core of a mighty mountain. Whenever we meet, I am often treated to long and interesting conversations about their journeys and what they have learnt during their thousand year solitudes, before I have to cover up their stories and assist them into their next life. 

I know this is a lot to be told in such a brief letter, but I feel as though these words will open your eyes to the world around you. I hope to make you realise that you are infinite and assure you, that this is nothing to be afraid of. For what is the difference between an infinite second and an infinite millennium? The answer lies in how you spend your infinity. 

That’s all I can tell you at the moment. If there is one thing that I want you to take from this letter, it is to remember this: you do not have a soul, you are a soul. You have a body.

Keep this in mind and I guarantee our next encounter will be fascinating. 

Good luck with your infinity,

The Soul Stirrer