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Previously: At the far side of the universe, in the crease of a small cosmic wrinkle, a cradle of pure energy held a singular point. From this point, all of the energy of the universe expanded out, returned, only to be ushered forth again. The energy was neither created nor destroyed, it just changed shape as needed. Inexplicably, a creature known as the Human materialized, asking, “What is going on?” A still, calm, yet powerful Voice reverberated from an unknown source, explaining to the Human that it was chosen to deliver a message to all of its kind — why the Human was chosen, and ‘what was going on?’ were pieces of information far beyond the scope of all Human understanding.

“You are at the eternal and perpetual source of all energy,” explained the Voice. “Energy is the source of all things. Ultimately, all things end and return back to a state of pure energy. You are hearing the Voice through which all energy speaks. Accept these things to be true. Any more questions?”

The voice had an eternity available for answering and explaining — even if some of the answers were beyond Human comprehension.

“You said I have a message to deliver. What is it, and who do I give it to?” asked the Human.

“The message was implanted into your memory,” explained the Voice. “It can be a tricky procedure and some of your memory might have gotten a little shuffled around in the process. Don’t worry about the memory loss. … It will return. You will know what you need to know, when you need to know it.”

“Okay, that told me squat,” replied the Human. “So, who am I supposed to give this unknown message to?”

“Everyone,” the Voice continued. “You have been chosen to deliver the message to all of your kind. By some, you will be harassed, reviled and ridiculed. By others, you will be respected, adored and revered. But, you don’t get to pick and choose — the message must be given to all. This is your destiny”

“Don’t I get a say in all this? This whole Deliver-the-Message stuff doesn’t sound like too much fun.”

“Of course, you do. You have free will,” the Voice repeated an explanation from earlier. “You can choose to turn your back on your calling and live a life of unfulfilled destiny. It happens all the time. The only difference is, the message you have been chosen to deliver will impact all of your kind. Choose wisely.”

“Whoa. No pressure there,” grumbled the Human. “What good is a message given under duress?”

“The message is the important part. The delivery system is not. You were chosen for this metaphysical task, but you have the power to refuse. Another One will be chosen in another couple of thousand years. If your kind can survive that long, they may receive the message then.”

“None of this makes any sense to me.”

“Some things are beyond comprehension and must be accepted without understanding. If you insist on understanding everything you know, you will know very little,” the Voice continued to explain. “For instance, humor is a truth — it exists, but not in the same way for everyone. What one finds funny, another might not — yet it exists for both. There is no explanation, yet it is an accepted truth.”

The Human pondered this new enlightenment and wondered why it made sense. Looking around the emptiness of this particular cosmic neighborhood, it asked the question to the only answer it wanted to hear, “So how do I get out of here?”

A foul ball on a 3-and-1 pitch careened toward the bleachers along the left field line. A quick bounce off the roof of the home team dugout absorbed some of the energy before the ball found the back of a head — knocking Terry out, cold. It took a few moments before Terry started to regain consciousness. First, the eyes opened, closed and opened again, adjusting to and absorbing the sight of people gawking and hovering overhead. Next, the ears tuned in the cacophony of the ballpark. Finally, the nose, tongue and innumerable epidermal nerve endings took in the aromas, tastes, and textures of the ballgame. “What’s going on?” Terry asked.