When She Left

 

The town of Raddisburg was very small and very isolated. There were hints of its existence, but most refused to believe that such a place actually existed. Teams of people had been formed over the centuries, seeking to find it among the millions of wooded acres and during this time, many men and women scattered throughout the hills and valleys, determined to find the mysterious place that carried stories of miraculous events in the confines of its alleged existence.

Those who lived in Raddisburg never left the boundaries of its streets and alleyways, always keeping an eye on their edges of their beloved town, fearing to venture into the woods that surrounded it. The population was small, and would occasionally receive an unannounced visitor, which they saw a blessing from their God to prevent the problem of inbreeding.

When one of these visitors would appear, they would be brought before the town council, thoroughly questioned, and given a series of choices to make about staying within the town with a promise to never leave. They were to find a spouse, produce offspring, and devote themselves to making the town stronger, healthier, and safe from any threat from the outside.

Everyone in the town had specific work skills and expertise that provided value for the town and its inhabitants. No one was homeless, no one was unemployed, and no one consumed without contributing for the good of their community. They mayor of Raddisburg was out on his daily walk one early morning when he saw a small child wandering near the edge of town and seemed to be drifting toward the forest. The mayor quickly looked in all directions and saw no adult nearby, confused by the presence of an unattended child.

Knowing the imminent danger of wandering alone into the forest, he hurried across the small field that divided the town from the forest, retrieved the child and hurried to the hospital. After depositing the child into the nursery, he phoned the police, reported what he had found and word quickly spread to every household, inquiring about any lost children. By end of day, there was no response from any household of a missing child.

The mayor then contacted the priest at the one temple in town, seeking help to finding a young married couple who desired to have a child. The priest responded with words of consolation and a promise to find someone who would take the child in and care for her. By the end of the week, a newly married couple had been found who were unable to generate children of their own for medical reasons that could not be determined.

The small child flourished in the nursery, became greatly loved by everyone there, and due to her small size was incapable of any communication. At the end of the last day, the priest and the young couple arrived at the nursery to communicate their desire to love, to raise, and to care for the child. The little girl had red hair, which was unknown and heretofore unseen within their town. The couple was thrilled with this beautiful child, excited at introducing someone with a different genetic makeup from anyone in the town.

One year passed, then the second year passed, until finally little Abigail grew into her teenage years and announced to her adopted parents that her greatest desire in life was to become a nun and live at the monastery connected to the temple. Her parents were confused, concerned, and disappointed that she would choose such a path, refusing to contribute her different set of genetics to the town. Different blood, different genetics, and variety was needed to allow their town to continue to grow and flourish.

As was typical for their town, the occasional person would drift into the area, embrace their new reality, and become part of the town. Even though Abigail’s parents were disappointed with her choice for her future, they did not argue with her or judge her for her choice. They had envisioned a new line of people with red hair and fair skin trickling into the town and adding some variety to their black hair, dark eyes, and tan skin.

When Abigail finished her last year of school, she accepted her graduation degree, sold most of her belongings, donated the money to the monastery, moved out of her parent’s home and into a small hut on the monastery grounds. Her parents would visit on occasion, deeply missing their daughter and struggling with the reality of never having grandchildren. They began to grow old, never having any children of their own, and they watched the fiery tempered, red haired little Abigail continue down the monastic path.

Abigail’s passion for holiness, for separation from the world, and strong desire to leave behind all worldly cares became a new standard for several other young women in the community. For her first ten years, Abigail was alone in her monastic struggles, overseen only by the priest at the temple. Soon, more and more girls joined her, and she became the mother superior, guiding, teaching, and helping the newly arrived girls with their own struggles.

The monastery continued to grow, eventually becoming a sisterhood of nearly fifty young women who contributed their time, their energy, and their love for others. The sisterhood slowly added a small home for children born with disabilities, both physical and mental, finding a path for these handicapped ones that no one seemed to want. They saw the beauty of simplicity and love in these little people who offered nothing but love and faithfulness to everyone they met.

Instead of becoming mothers themselves, they embraced these disposed children, loved them, raised them, encouraged them, and taught them skills that would contribute to the betterment and improvement of their town. Large gardens were developed and grown, creating a steady stream of food to those who were struggling to feed their families. The raising of livestock, and the creation of clothing, all began to develop and improve over the years, while Abigail thrived in her position of leadership.

She began to slow down in her work, in her time, and in her passion for helping others as she grew older. On the evening of her fiftieth birthday, a massive golden glow appeared at the edge of the forest. This unusual spectacle drew everyone from their homes to see what exactly it was that was taking place. The entire town appeared at the outer edge of the city to see a small group of people who all looked identical to Abigail emerge from the woods.

They stopped in the middle of the field and a single older gentlemen walked away from them and toward the edge of the city to be greeted by the mayor. The two men shook hands, exchanged greetings, and lovingly embraced one another, as they could both see that this was a good and honest exchange of two loving peoples. They motioned for all of them to enter the city to enjoy a large feast that was being prepared because of their arrival.

They mayor asked what brought them to their little town in the middle of the massive forest. The man representing these people inquired about one of their children that disappeared many years before and if she had been found and brought into this small town. The mayor called for the priest to join them and Abigail from called forth from her monastic independence. Her appearance at the feast brought shouts of joy and excitement from the new visitors.

The mayor, Abigail’s adopted parents and the entire town watched in awe at the beautiful reunion of Abigail with her people. The representative from their people and a few others separated themselves with Abigail and spoke in a language that was completely foreign to them. In a long series of clicks and whistles, all of which Abigail clearly understood, something beautiful was communicated and shared between them. The main representative removed a small device from his pocket, spoke into it, and pointed toward the sky to reveal a flying device that landed in the field behind them.

All of the beautiful, red headed people began to enter the flying device, but Abigail hesitated, motioned for one of her fellow monastics to approach her, and communicated her desire to see her take over her role as mother superior. Her fellow monastic knelt before her, kissed her hand, and through tears tried to convince her to stay with them. The town stood in silence and awe as Abigail hugged her adopted parents, entered the flying device, and waved goodbye. The vehicle then quickly ascended beyond the clouds, leaving the entire town confused and thankful for all of the good that Abigail had brought to them and taught them.

Within moments of their disappearance, the town once again descended into darkness, the monastics returned to their solitude and everyone returned to their homes, thankful for this remarkable and amazing introduction and sad loss of their beloved Abigail.