Encouragement

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Love one
another...
as I
have loved
you.
[John 13:34]
*******************
Guardino is standing outside
the Throne Room Door;
One of the angels is sitting
beside Guardino:
in a slumped position,
with chin in both palms.

(The slumping angel,
named Alfred,
looks at up the Big Guard,
who is at least a good six
feet taller than him. Alfred
pleads with an impatient whine.)
"WHEN can I go IN?"

(Guardino doesn't look
down; his eyes continue
looking straight ahead.)
"Soon."

(Angel Alfred, who's still
wearing his journey-to-Earth-gown,
whispers to his big friend.)
"Do you think They're
gonna send me BACK,
THERE?"

(Guardino shakes his
big, curly head.)
"That's not for ME to
SAY.....Alfred. You're
goin' to have to talk to
the FATHER, about THAT."

(Alfred leans forward on
the Golden Bench; he stares
up at Big Guardino, and
whispers.)
"But.......I don't LIKE it
THERE, GUARDINO!
IT'S too ROUGH! Those
nasty DEMONS are all
OVER....the PLACE! I don't
know how.....the HUMANS
STAND IT!"

(Guardino shrugs. He
shakes his big head; the
halo over his curly hair
doesn't shake at all.)
"Most HUMANS don't even
know.....that,
they're.... THERE."

"I can't BELIEVE THAT,
GUARDINO! HOW COULD
THEY NOT KNOW......?"

(Guardino shifts one bare
foot. He's hoping Archangel
Michael dosn't show up;
his Guard-Patrol Angels weren't
supposed to talk, while
they were on duty.....unless
they were commanded to
do so. He leans his big
head to the side, where
his friend is seated on the
Golden Bench, and speaks
as hushed as possible.)
"Because.....they don't...
BELIEVE."

(Alfred scratches his
pear-shaped nose. In Heaven,
he NEVER has to scratch,
but his sensitive skin
is still reacting to
Earth's polluted, and sinful
atmosphere.)
"Well.......WHAT do they
THINK.....causes all that
TROUBLE?"

"They THINK....it's just
COINCIDENCE.....or....
bad LUCK....so's I've HEARD."

"Why CAN'T they BELIEVE?"

(Guardino pauses. He
fingers the bag of pretzels*
in his angel-gown-pocket;
he's going to have to wait
till he gets off-duty:
especially if Archangel
Michael shows up.)
"I guess that's why the
Father sent YOU down
there, Alfred.....to
HELP them."

(Alfred, who doesn't have
to worry about Archangel
Michael showing up, since
he's not part of the Guard,
or Fighting-Warrior-Patrol,
pulls a big, hot soft pretzel**
out of his journey-gown-pocket.
He digs deeper in his pocket, and
finds the little packet of
spicy mustard, also. He pulls
it out, and tentatively rips
it open. A drop of grainy
yellow mustard lands on the
off-brown, gauzy, journey-tunic
that Alfred hasn't taken
off yet, since he flew back
to Heaven. Maybe, the Father
won't see it; should
he fly back to his angel-
quarters, and CHANGE?)
"Well.....I'm NOT!
I'm NOT, GUARDINO!
In FACT...I think I'm
just makin' things WORSE!
Those HUMANS were
better OFF....BEFORE I
EVER GOT ASSIGNED THERE!"

(Guardino sighs; unfortunately,
he acts one of the bar-tenders that
one finds down on Human-
Earth; having to stand
all day in front of
the Throne Room Doorway,
he is also there to lend
a sympathetic ear to all
the angels who have come
to tell their troubles to
the Lord, and the Father. While
waiting to be commanded to
go in the Throne Room,
angels are always happy to
tell all their woes to Guardino, too.)
"ALFRED.......I'm SURE...
it isn't THAT BAD.....
you just need a bit of
cheering UP, is all......
YOU'LL SEE.......the Lord
wouldn't have sent you DOWN there,
if He hadn't had complete CONFIDENCE
in YOU...."

(Little Alfred shrugs;
he chews thoughtfully
on a hot piece of doughy-
pretzel. A big of grainy-yellow
mustard plops on the corner
of his plump mouth.
His mouth is full.)
"Well.........."
(Chew.)
(Chew.)
"WELL.......MAYBE,
you're RIGHT, Guardino!"
STILL........!"
(Chew.)
(Some more yellow mustard
drips onto his rounded chin.
His gauzy-brown-journey-tunic
is now spotted with little,
and big drops of grainy-yellow
mustard.)

"WAIT till you TALK
to the FATHER.....
Alfred. HE'LL give you
the best ADVICE....and,
TELL you what to DO.
(Guardino shrugs. Again,
he thinks of the bag of pretzels
in his big pocket. Unlike Alfred's,
they're the small, crisp kind. Was
Archangel Michael EXPECTED.....today?
Guardino couldn't remember.)
"Cheer UP, Alfred!
The LORD'S on His
THRONE....and,
all's RIGHT with the
WORLD!"

[SUDDENLY, A SLIGHT
RUMBLE IS SOUNDED
OVERHEAD. IT'S THE
LORD: SPEAKING QUIETLY
TO HIS GUARD-
IN-WAITING.]

(Alfred stops chewing,
while he looks up at Guardino
who's looking up
at the Throne Room Hallway
Ceiling. Alfred waits a
moment, and then speaks.)
"Did the FATHER SAY
I CAN COME IN, NOW?"

(Guardino, still looking up
at the Throne Room Hallway
Ceiling: nods, several times.)
"Yeah.
You can go IN, now....
ALFRED."

(Alfred stands up;
some doughy pretzel
crumbs fall from his plump
lap to the Gold Floor.)
"Is it OKAY?"

(Guardino nods. He looks
down at little Alfred.)
"Yeah. It's OKAY, now.
You can go IN."

(Alfred sighs, and laying
aside the little open packet
of spicy mustard on the
big Golden Bench: alongside
two other doughy pretzels,
and an extra-large bag of french fries,
and three packets of Heinz Ketchup.)
"I'll get it on the way
OUT.....OKAY?"

(Guardino sighs.)
"OKAY..........but,
I HOPE MICHAEL doesn't
show UP! I'll get a REPRIMANDING."

"Ahhh! HE WON'T SAY
NOTHIN'!"

(Guardino sighs.)
"Just GO ON IN, Alfred.
And, TALK to the FATHER;
TELL HIM, EXACTLY HOW
YOU ARE FEELING.....just
like, you told ME; OKAY?"

"OKAY, GUARDINO!
HEY!
I'M FEELIN' BETTER, ALREADY!
THANKS!"

(Guardino, standing behind
the Big Gold Throne Room
Door and opening it with
his free hand, just nods.)
"...me, too.....
Alfred,
me,
too."
*******************
And,
we exhort you,
brethren....
encourage the
faint-hearted,
help the weak,
be patient
with
them all.
[1 Thessalonians 5:14]

_________________
*Angels don't have to eat;
but, they can eat if they
want to. It's sort of like
humans, and looking up at
the moon at night: they
don't have to....but, they
can, if they want to.
**Picked up, during his
latest trip to The Land
of The West: specifically,
the city of Philadelphia.

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