The result of a "Four Room" assignment by Jeri Sutherling

The click, click of the keyboards like the relentless march of time could be heard even before I entered the room. Four white walls and rows of gray cubicles lined the space. Each person wore a black business suit sitting at his desk. Their faces were glued to the computer screen. I cleared my throat as if to establish a presence. They did not look up, or break rhythm. Reams of paper spilled on to the floor. A clerk hovering in a nearby corner counted stacks of 100 dollar bills. The silence was deafening. I tiptoed out as quietly as I had come in, remaining unnoticed.

I cautiously knocked on the door to room #2. I was greeted by “Uga Ugh!” The door flew open. A hand grabbed my arm, and yanked me in to a dim lit cave. Around a fire, five hairy Neanderthal men sat stirring a pot. They smacked their lips, and grunted. The leader pushed me over to the hot flame, and made gestures with his large bony hands. The group seemed to agree with his suggestion. As they struggled to get up, I found my voice. Yelling like a banshee I ran for the exit leaving only my footprints behind.

The wafting fragrance of jasmine beckoned to me. As I grew close to the door, I heard a trickle of water. Turning the knob, I slowly entered. The luscious tropical landscape, of varying shades of green, caught my eye. Trees in this forest grew 20 feet tall. I waded through the high grass to the cheerful sounds beyond. I peered through the brush, and saw chimpanzees. As I spotted them, they looked up. We stared at one another. My heart increased in tempo, and pounded in my ears. A chimp lumbered over. He held out his hand, and waited. I felt he wanted me to follow him. Fearfully, I took his rough fingers, and walked with him towards the group not knowing what would happen. The curious chimps patted my head, poked, and prodded my belly. Even though they were wild animals, I felt calm. After much ado, the leader put his arm around my shoulder then gently pushed me in the direction of the gushing water. We were standing at the top of a waterfall. Long tortuous vines hung from the trees. He motioned for me to hold on to the vine with him. Just as I grabbed his hairy waist, he jumped off the ground. We started to fly, and leap from vine to vine. The wind whistled past my ears, and mussed my hair. Many of the other chimps joined in swinging. They dropped rocks in to the falls; and we watched them cascade down the bluffs. I laughed because it was such a wonderful feeling to be free of responsibilities. The chimps howled, and chirped. They sailed from vine to tree, and tree to vine. I felt emboldened by the mood, and let out a Tarzan yell. One by one, the chimps retreated to their nesting area. I landed with a thud to the ground, and followed the pack. The cool night air chilled me but the group pushed me to the center, and huddled to keep me warm. They shared their fruit, and berries with me. I felt safe, and part of the family. As they cuddled close, their snores filled the quiet solitude. I was torn between leaving and staying. I looked closely at every face, keeping the memories close to my heart. Before departing, I quietly walked down to the stream while pondering the day. I splashed the cool water to my face to refresh myself; and to my surprise, a hairy face was reflected back at me.

The black door of room #4 frightened me. It wasn’t the color of the door, but the austere feeling behind the door that scared me. As I turned the knob, it simply slid open. I was falling, falling, falling in to a bottomless vat of darkness. I kicked my arms and legs trying to feel something solid, but my body perceived only a void. I felt no cold, no heat, no wind, and no rain. I felt nothing but emptiness. I was being sucked to the center of a matter less pit. I screamed for help, but no one answered my plea. For every minute I fell, the suction increased until I felt I was going to explode. Then bang…Bang…BANG! The darkness turned to light. The light became the sun, moon, planets, and stars. I held my breath as I ricocheted from one galaxy to another, waiting for the end to come; but just the opposite occurred. My ears turned deaf to the excruciating noise as the explosions continued. Fireworks filled the space, and new matter appeared. As I was shot out of these microbursts, I landed on a shooting star. The brightness of it made me squint. We whirled through the night leaving a trail of dust behind us. The cosmic piece traveled so fast and so far that my soul was left years behind. I knew that I would never find my way back to where I had entered this universe. I had just given up hope when another door appeared. Only this door illuminated more brilliance than anything I had ever seen. The radiance called to me, and drew me in. I knew at that moment I had found the answer to what I had been searching. A kind and gentle voice beckoned me home; this must be God.