Ever wonder why your birthmark looks different from mine? It means that I’ve been assigned certain tasks and responsibilities. Furthermore, it means that I’ve left this world and come back again. I’ve been reborn. The birthmark was my pass back to life. I know this may sound a little crazy right now but I’ll try my best to explain it the best that I can. I figure it’s been around one year since I died. My time on earth was spent mostly traveling from country to country. I grew up an orphan. I never had the privilege of meeting any of my relatives or siblings. So, when I turned fifteen I decided to run away. I made tiny flags and placed them in various towns. There’s plenty of beauty in this world to heal a broken spirit, but it can also cause one to never want to leave. I’m proud to say that my travels haven’t come to an end. I get to visit places you wouldn’t believe, and see landscapes you’ve only dreamed of. We’ll get into all that some other time, but I’m heading back up for now. I’ve been called to meet with the other chaps. They’ve all been given the eternal pass or the birthmark just like the one you see on my arm. We were picked from the litter long ago before anyone knew who we were or what we looked like. My birthmark has changed into a small blue spot, but originally resembled what looked like an upside down sailboat. At times I still check for any trace of the brown sailboat shaped smudge I had just above my right elbow. I miss my upside down sailboat.

My name is Paddy Maddox. I’m one of the newest members of the “Ever After Class” or the “EAC”. That’s what the chaps are calling it these days. Can’t seem to remember what the big wings call it. You’ll find I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer but I’m a stubborn one. Took me an extra few months to get my blue shoes. My blues allow me to cross over into the spiritual realm. There are several different items you must earn to graduate from the EAC. One of which are these nifty blue shoes of mine. I’ll admit that I’m quite proud to wear them even though the wings are small right now, but they’ll grow over time. One of these days I’ll have big wings, and land a seat closer to the big guy.

A massive line of chaps throw up their hands, and occasionally look back at the next. I tried peeking around the crowd to see just how far back we were but it was no use. Every single one of us in this line are known as dots. Dots are good spirits that can travel throughout the entire universe. We protect humans and other life forms from evil spirits. We’re the ones fighting against what you cannot see. The multicolored tiles beneath our feet begin to glow into bright orbs of light. A loud thud struck beneath the glowing surface, putting a stop to the chattering voices. “Welcome to all who’ve been called here today. Congratulations to our newest members, and graduates!” The light was far too powerful for anyone’s eyes to penetrate.

Paddy had long red hair that wrapped around his shoulders connecting his beard. He always wore a wide brim fedora to try and cover it all. It seemed to be an important part of him. “Hear me now, Paddy.” The voice was so powerful that it caused the wings on the man’s shoes to spread open and grow twice the size they were before. “You’re heading back down now to see this finished.” The man smiled under the mask of his beard and said “Good, Maddie. Good.” The snow hill of light beneath my feet began swirling, and the wings on my shoes took me back down to earth. A radiant blast of golden yellow stretched for miles, fading into a bright orange blanket hanging over the tops of trees. Every single thing here had its place, color, and appointed time except for brown. This color was very special. Brown was strong, and far better than anyone here ever realized or imagined it could be. The brown eyes had the ability to bring others together. This color saw the world through a lens no one else had. It was the deepest eye of them all, and behind them, the most beautiful mind.

On the second day, I found a beautiful woman sitting alone. I thought, why would someone so lovely choose to sit alone? It truly bothered me, and so I spoke to her. A part of me wanted to know that she was a real person, and not just some figure of my imagination. She was actually on a short break, waiting for her training class to continue. So, I wished her luck, and moved onward to fulfill my daily tasks. A few moments later I noticed that she’d grabbed her things, and moved to another sitting area. Now I’m thinking, she just didn’t want to be bothered. I tried to leave her in peace, but keeping quiet began to hurt. I said, “So, do you attend church here?” She smiled, and answered no. “We’d love to have you come attend church with us if you ever feel like it.” She grinned, and then turned around to see if others were beginning to head back to class. But before she could leave, I said, “God still loves you.”

I find it very important to let people know there’s no end to the love of God. I felt as though this woman had been going through some serious stuff, and maybe the stress of life had its grip on her, but I discovered this sincere concern for people that I didn’t have before coming to know Christ. I hope that meant as much to her as it did to me. This is just one way I know he’s at work in my life. Plus, he’s gifted me with this pair of deep beautiful brown eyes. Truthfully, there’s nowhere I can’t go, and nothing I can’t see.