The dawn of the next day came up sooner than expected. The birds were chirping and the roads were getting busy just like the previous morning. I was very sad to see the vacant swing in front of Chris’s house Sara used just before the trip, and she would never be on that again. Sara probably couldn’t identify that it was their house as the aerial views were too complex for her mind.
The flexi-bubble started moving. It was an immediate indication that something exciting was going to happen. From the place it finally stopped at, we saw a funeral procession coming out. I have been to this funeral parlor a few times before. It was one of the Bush Funeral Service buildings in the area about 6 miles from my apartment. About 15 vehicles were following the hearse. My sister’s car was just behind the hearse. That told me who was in the hearse. An important guy to me! I realized it was leading to the same crematorium where Dan’s cremation took place. The flexi-bubble moved again and stopped at the exact place where it stopped for Dan’s funeral as it was a designated parking place for bubbles.
The coffin was carried straight to the crematorium operator. It was kept on the pad that takes the coffins to the incinerator. The operator waited until all the people gathered there. My great college friend and “Guru” Joe was standing next to my coffin. We have been keeping in touch regularly. However, I had not spoken to him in over two months. Joe is a professor at Harvard and had two PhDs. One was in Philosophy and the other in Mythology. He’s a close follower of Professor Joseph Campbell. He was responsible for making me think rationally on religious beliefs, paranormal and superstitious ideas. He helped me to understand and re-evaluate all dogmatic concepts and ideas through a gradual self-realization process. I’m really indebted to him for taking me through that process. Though we both didn’t believe in afterlife we had a pact. That was to communicate with the other if we ever experience anything after death. So, it was my duty to somehow communicate with him to indicate there is an afterlife. He would be the happiest person to know about it from me as his best friend. How can I do that? It was my responsibility to tell him. I told this loudly to all my friends in the flexi-bubble. All of us knew Joe because of my friendship. Dan suggested trying something like telepathy. I kept concentrating on his brain to see whether he could receive any signals from me that way. I was trying my best to keep my concentration on his brain, sending a stream of brain waves requesting him to look up as an indication of receiving my message. It would have been better if I was closer as the frequencies of our brainwaves are poor in transmitting far. I tried it over 15 minutes, but he wasn’t moving. I was sure others in the flexi-bubble were doing the same. For the very first time I had a bad feeling to judge him as a dud. He was more rigid than my dead body. I wasn’t sure whether he was stunned because of my signals or whether he had forgotten about our pact all together. His posture was the same even after I gave up all my attempts.
A few of my friends, colleagues and relatives touched the coffin to convey their last salute to my body. Joe was the last to move out after the operator pressed the button to get my coffin into the incinerator. The first smoke emitted from the chimney was thick black. I was sure it wasn’t from my body, as it takes a few minutes to burn through the coffin. I wasn’t sad nor had I any emotional feelings. I felt sorry to see Joe, my sister and others, probably for the last time. Chris, Dan and Aini stood close to me when all that was taking place.
“Tony, you didn’t want to have any religious ritual, right?” Aini asked.
“When I came to this world I didn’t have a religion like the very first man on earth. I wanted to exit that way. You know me, right!” I said.
“You had the way you wanted,” Chris said.
“Oh! Yes. I’m very happy about it,” I said.
“What did you want to do with your ashes?” Chris asked.
“Just discarded. But I know some people make diamonds from ashes,” I said.
“Diamonds!” Aini was surprised.
“I’m not joking. Do you know there are companies who do that?”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, as bones and diamonds are made of carbon they can do this. Though it’s an expensive process, the diamonds made of your loved ones ashes can be worn all the time. I hear these companies keep part of the ash to make extra ones if you lose the original,” I said.
“Unbelievable!” Aini said.
“There are companies who make concrete spheres by mixing ash remains with corals. If the deceased was an ocean-lover they place these spheres in private beaches for a fee. Their friends’ spheres can also join the same beach if they wish to sign up with these companies. Also, there are companies who undertake spreading the ash into deep space through space rockets. Their families can look up into the sky and say their loved ones are up there,” I said.
“Is that true?” Aini asked.
“Yes!”
A few hours passed. I loudly predicted that the flexi-bubble would take us to Chris’s funeral next. Nobody cared as it was obvious. It could happen at any time. Perhaps, Lily may have a funeral too after Chris’s. We weren’t sure whether that would happen as we didn’t see Lily’s dead body.
“Dan, what happened to Lily’s body?” I asked.
“That’s a big puzzle to me. Did any of you see Lily’s body at the site of the accident?” Dan asked.
“None of us saw Lily’s body. I think Lily would have been thrown out of the SUV first, since she wasn’t trapped by a seat belt,” I said.
Lily looked at us a few times as she heard her name.
We started chit chatting to kill time. Suddenly, a large flock of Canadian geese flew past us. We thought they would hit us as they were coming directly towards us. Sara shouted with excitement to get our attention.
“Unbelievable! Did you realize the birds flew around the flex-bubble without hitting it?” Dan said.
“They saw us?” I said.
“Is it possible?” Aini asked.
“I always thought the flexi-bubble had special properties. Just like my earlier explanation I have something to say on what you saw just now,” Chris said.
“What is it?” Dan asked.
“You know in jungles there are huge spider webs, which are meant to catch insects. Spiders take a few days to weave these large webs. The problem for them is, if birds fly across the web they have to weave the web again.” Before Chris explained it fully Dan asked, “So, what is the connection?”
“The connection is the thread the spider makes has a special chemical that can reflect ultra violet rays. Birds can see UV rays. So, birds flying towards the webs visualize the web as big barrier and avoid those. Maybe the flexi-bubble has some properties like that the birds can see,” Chris said.
“Chris I haven’t heard that before. That is a very interesting fact. You are teaching us things even after your death. Thanks!” I said.
“You’re welcome,” Chris said. “Some glass companies in Germany use this principle and add a special chemical to the glass to prevent migratory birds hitting the glass in tall buildings.”
“There must be so many things in nature we’re unaware of,” Dan said.
The Phone Rang in the Middle of My Shower Page 4
