looked thinner and moved heavily. They had been explained that it would take some time after the unfortunate accident for his body to regain its usual shape. Excepting the expression of calmness that now filled his face, the man didn’t seem any different. They had a lot to thank to modern medical science.
8
D eparture time was close. Seating at the table, four merry diners were going through the last bites of a delicious pot roast.
As the dishes were empty , the guest could not refrain himself anymore, and addressing the head of the family that had given him so much in exchange for nothing, he broke the silence. He needed to get an answer to the question that had haunted his mind lately:
“A few days ago I stood for the first time in front of you,” he began. “Setting eyes on me was enough for you to understand my situation, and you sheltered me without hesitation. You didn’t mind the danger or the troubles that I carry along and which now I’ve made yours as well. Instead, I have received from you without being asked anything in return. You have harbored me and fed me. You have hidden me at the risk of your own safety. You have washed and cleaned after me. You have put up with my presence in the privacy of your family. I have received endless hours of advice from you. You have not accepted any compensation from me or even asked me to help in domestic chores. Your kindness falls beyond my understanding. People like you do not exist in the place I come from. I find it hard to understand the trust you have given me to share your space with no restrictions, allowing me to stay for long hours alone among everything you own, and even more when you do not show the slightest suspicion of fearing any evil from me. Who are you? What are you made of? Is everybody in this side of the world like you?”
A burst of laughter from the farmer interrupted his speech. Both women in the room joined the man to laugh along with him. It was such an explosion of hilarity that even the guest got swept into it and ended up laughing at par to the point that tears welled in his eyes. When calmness finally came back, the farmer answered wiping his tears with his shirt’s sleeve:
“Consider it paid with this. We had n’t laughed like this in a long time. However, you deserve an explanation.”
He leane d against the back of the chair, took his cup and sipped some coffee. Then, putting the cup back on the table he asked:
“In that place where you come from , by any chance, do people remember that God exists? It is said around here that you have replaced the Creator with your technology, that you have lost your fear of death because you deceive yourselves believing to be immortal, and that you have forgotten that inside your bodies dwells a soul that is animated by the very spirit. Fortunately, we are God-fearing people, just as most of this community’s members. Our religion compels us to help others, and in spite that it seems to be that you bear recycled souls, we see you as fellow human beings. I have found it easy to see that you are an honest person, and I rather think that in recent years you have been deceived by the rules that have been governing your way of life, which after all, in some way are your own religion. The mere fact that you are fleeing your world tells me that you are a seeker of truth and that you have given up your tech version of immortality, and this is just why it is my duty to help you. We still believe that we wear mortal bodies with immortal souls. We believe in eternal life and the glory of God. We are happy to be a part of your new beginning and you will be in our prayers forever. It is we who thank heaven for your arrival.”
The room went silent for a while, until the guest resumed the conversation:
“ I hadn’t thought of such things as God, soul, or eternal life since I was first replicated; until then, those concepts that my parents instilled in me when I was still a child still came to my
8
D eparture time was close. Seating at the table, four merry diners were going through the last bites of a delicious pot roast.
As the dishes were empty , the guest could not refrain himself anymore, and addressing the head of the family that had given him so much in exchange for nothing, he broke the silence. He needed to get an answer to the question that had haunted his mind lately:
“A few days ago I stood for the first time in front of you,” he began. “Setting eyes on me was enough for you to understand my situation, and you sheltered me without hesitation. You didn’t mind the danger or the troubles that I carry along and which now I’ve made yours as well. Instead, I have received from you without being asked anything in return. You have harbored me and fed me. You have hidden me at the risk of your own safety. You have washed and cleaned after me. You have put up with my presence in the privacy of your family. I have received endless hours of advice from you. You have not accepted any compensation from me or even asked me to help in domestic chores. Your kindness falls beyond my understanding. People like you do not exist in the place I come from. I find it hard to understand the trust you have given me to share your space with no restrictions, allowing me to stay for long hours alone among everything you own, and even more when you do not show the slightest suspicion of fearing any evil from me. Who are you? What are you made of? Is everybody in this side of the world like you?”
A burst of laughter from the farmer interrupted his speech. Both women in the room joined the man to laugh along with him. It was such an explosion of hilarity that even the guest got swept into it and ended up laughing at par to the point that tears welled in his eyes. When calmness finally came back, the farmer answered wiping his tears with his shirt’s sleeve:
“Consider it paid with this. We had n’t laughed like this in a long time. However, you deserve an explanation.”
He leane d against the back of the chair, took his cup and sipped some coffee. Then, putting the cup back on the table he asked:
“In that place where you come from , by any chance, do people remember that God exists? It is said around here that you have replaced the Creator with your technology, that you have lost your fear of death because you deceive yourselves believing to be immortal, and that you have forgotten that inside your bodies dwells a soul that is animated by the very spirit. Fortunately, we are God-fearing people, just as most of this community’s members. Our religion compels us to help others, and in spite that it seems to be that you bear recycled souls, we see you as fellow human beings. I have found it easy to see that you are an honest person, and I rather think that in recent years you have been deceived by the rules that have been governing your way of life, which after all, in some way are your own religion. The mere fact that you are fleeing your world tells me that you are a seeker of truth and that you have given up your tech version of immortality, and this is just why it is my duty to help you. We still believe that we wear mortal bodies with immortal souls. We believe in eternal life and the glory of God. We are happy to be a part of your new beginning and you will be in our prayers forever. It is we who thank heaven for your arrival.”
The room went silent for a while, until the guest resumed the conversation:
“ I hadn’t thought of such things as God, soul, or eternal life since I was first replicated; until then, those concepts that my parents instilled in me when I was still a child still came to my
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