Hidden in the back corner of a rural county fair, there is a small circus tent. The red and white stripes of the tent are faded. The edges of the fabric are worn out from years of travel across the country. Only a few people from the county fair find the tent. Even fewer people are brave enough to step inside for the show that is about to begin.
When the doorway of the tent closes, it is frighteningly dark inside. A bright spotlight clicks on to reveal a man standing at center stage as if he appeared out of nowhere.
The man is finely dressed like a ringleader of a circus from long ago. He wears a tall, black top hat and a red coat with long coattails. He has a sharp chin and nose that complements his dark black handlebar mustache and pointed goatee. The ringleader bows although no one is clapping. When he rises back up, he begins to speak.
"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, seekers of truth, citizens with spiritual sensitivity... Step right up. Step right up and experience...THE FUTURE!"
He speaks quickly but clearly. There is something mystic and light in his demeanor, but his voice has a strong, serious weight.
"Are you lost, anxiously waiting for direction in your life? Are you stuck on a plateau unable to climb higher into the knowledge of spiritual fulfillment? Or has a tragedy struck your life and you expect there is a purpose and a plan in it, but you just can't see that far ahead? Or are you desperate to achieve that true significance in life? Well, then, today is your lucky day folks, because I have with me a cutting-edge, spiritual-engineering achievement the likes of which few have ever dared to dream of before!"
A second bright spotlight clicks on to show a tall table next to the man. On top of the table is a red satin cloth covering a square shaped object.
"Underneath this very cloth lies a gadget that has broken the secret to TIME TRAVEL! With this state-of-the-art, finely tuned contraption I can send you forward in time to the exact moment where you have a breakthrough into your destiny of spiritual significance. No more waiting! No more questioning! Your spiritual future is ready for you now! Who is ready for breakthrough?"
The audience is silent. No one dares to move.
"You, sir!" In a sharp motion, the ringleader points directly at a man in the crowd. "Tell me, what spiritual moment in your future are you eager to reach?"
The man in the crowd is reluctant to move at first, but the ringleader grabs the man by the shoulders and escorts him into the spotlight.
The man cautiously speaks. "I teach a small Sunday school class, but I feel like I have a lot more to offer. I dream about teaching at conferences or maybe hosting a video series. I've been doing some research and looking for job openings, but the opportunity just hasn't arrived yet."
The ringmaster wraps one arm around the man and points to the audience with the other. "That's an amazing calling of the highest order. I have good news for you. My mechanized marvel can send you into the future right at that moment when the spiritual breakthrough of your holy calling finally, at long last, starts to come together. But be warned! This awesome appliance can only send you into the future! Once there, I cannot bring you back to this present time."
The man takes a step back and quietly says, "I'm not so sure about..."
"Excellent!" shouts the ringmaster. He grabs the edge of the satin cloth covering the square shaped object sitting on the table. "Behold...the magnificent machine of TIME TRAVEL!" In one smooth, fast, exaggeratedly long, looping motion, the ringmaster pulls the red cloth from the table with a snap. Now exposed on the table is a large, rectangular cardboard box. The corners of the box are dented. The top end is held closed with duct tape. On the side of the box, written in black marker with shaky letters are the words 'TIME MACHINE.'
A quiet chuckle escapes from every corner of the audience. The man asks, "Is this a joke?"
The ringmaster's tone does not change. "Have faith, good sir. For you see, the greatest of blessings are often contained in the most humble of sources." Before the man can respond, the ringmaster is sliding the open end of the cardboard box on top of the man's head. The box is big enough to cover down to his elbows, but small enough that it fits snugly around his shoulders.
Inside the cardboard time machine box, the man is both confused and annoyed. He can hear the voice of the ringmaster muffled by the cardboard walls. "We start with a DNA scan of your brain." A bright light blinds the man from every side of the cardboard box.
The man struggles to speak. "Wha-? What just happened? Where did that light come from?"
The man hears a loud chime like a large church bell. The ringmaster continues his preparation. "I have successfully triangulated the quantum mechanics to locate the precise moment of your breakthrough into spiritual significance! Are you ready to proceed, good sir!"
"What is going on?" replies the man who might be in an early stage of shock.
"Excellent!" shouts the ringmaster. "Let us begin the checklist!" The man is still regaining his vision from the flash of light when he begins to hear mechanical clicking. The ringmaster shouts, "Cosmic treadmill at full power." A buzzing noise fills the air. The man can feel rapid vibrations from the cardboard box. The ringmaster continues. "Flux capacitor engaged." There are three beeping sounds then a large clang like a wrench hitting a metal pipe. "Percussive maintenance applied to the time rotor." The man hears the sizzle of electricity, and the hairs on his arm stand up. "Skynet disabled." The man can hear a whizzing sound rotating around him. It speeds up with each turn. "Fourth dimension obtained." A rainbow color of lights floods the box from the open end at the man's elbows. The man can hear the distant voice of the ringmaster call out one last time, "Bon voyage, good sir, your future awaits!" The rainbow colors flow back and forth like the gentle motion of water on a calm sea. The man feels weightless as a sense of joy spreads across his body. The rainbow colors brighten into a flood of white light so bright the man closes his eyes, but the brightness doesn't hurt. Even with closed eyes the light becomes so bright it is as if they were open. The man smiles in total peace.
After a moment, the man can hear the muffled voice of someone nearby. It takes a moment for his eyes to readjust.
"What did you say?" the man replies in a soft, relaxed voice.
"Good sir, your transit through time was a success!"
The man blinks awake as if from a beautiful dream. As his vision clears, he sees the ringmaster standing in front of him holding the cardboard box. "What?" the man mumbles. The man starts to regain his senses. "Where am I?"
"The future!" shouts the ringmaster.
The man takes a moment to look around. At first, it's difficult to see in the darkness around him. But suddenly he remembers. The man realizes he is still standing in the center of the worn out circus tent at the edge of the county fair. "Wait," the man says in frustration, "I didn't go anywhere!"
"Of course you did," replies the ringmaster.
"No I didn't. I'm still right here!"
The ringmaster pulls back his left sleeve to look at a large silver wristwatch. "My digital chronological meter shows that you have journeyed 10 seconds into the future!"
"I had that stupid box on my head for 10 seconds." yells the man at the ringmaster. "It's still right now! Nothing has changed!"
"Then that must mean that this moment right now is THE moment of the breakthrough into your destiny of spiritual significance!"
"What?!? What breakthrough? Everything is the same. Nothing has changed for me!"
"If my time machine brought you here, then your breakthrough must not be in a change in the things around you, but a change in the things inside you. All around you there are many paths, but inside you there is only one WAY. Do not confuse the paths for the WAY."
The spotlights turn off, and the tent is frighteningly dark, just as it was to begin the show. The doorway of the tent opens and light floods into the tent. The ringmaster has vanished as quickly as he appeared. The audience walks out of the tent in confused silence, all except the man in the center.
He is too deep in thought to move. He whispers to himself, "follow the WAY, not the paths."
He is having a breakthrough into his destiny of spiritual significance.
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New Parables to Ponder: 12 Stories to Spark Spiritual Questions
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