A heavenly place
By G. George Ostrom
I’ve never met anyone who can trot out irrefutable proof positive evidence that there is a heaven. That is a concept based on faith and remains one of the greatest intriguing mysteries of human existence. Our Christian religions all talk about it, and of course the concept of a life hereafter and how to qualify for admission is the cornerstone of those beliefs. The concept of “a better place” is an integral part of practically every known religion.
For the sake of this discussion we are going to assume there “is another life” after this one. That leads to the question of “What is it like there?” Early Scandinavians had Valhalla, American Indians had The Happy Hunting Grounds and the Sand Hills, Greek and Elysian Fields, and we have so many other visions of the ultimate Paradise. There are thousands of concepts of heaven, but I doubt that any of us would be very successful if we had the job of designing it.
Most of us tend to think of “The Perfect World” as a place where there is no violence, no unhappiness, plenty of food for everyone, and no worries about anything. Our most popular Christian religions talk about living in a state of blessedness, without sin, in the presence of a kind, benevolent God. If you really get to thinking about this, you have to get worried about just how people spend their time up there. Seems like forever is a long long time to sit around in a state of blessedness. Few people are crazy enough to seriously attempt designing a Heaven. But then, they don’t have to turn out a column every week.
George Ostrom’s heaven would have more beautiful trails to hike and mountains to climb than a person could ever get to. There would be a wide variety of mysterious murmuring streams with big trout lurking in unexpected riffles and pools, and there’d have to be dear friends to share good times. Ostrom’s Eden would include great silent places where people could go and watch thunderstorms sweep across the prairies, vast rugged hills, and great undulating oceans. There would be mournful winds to bring snow storms howling around your house so that dancing flames in the fireplace seemed the best of evening companions.
In my Garden of Eden, I would include soil to till so we could watch the miracle of a tiny seed turning into something tasty to eat, and there would be other soil for growing grass along the seashores or over rolling hills where people could hit a little round ball and then chase it to their hearts content. There would also be all kinds of work, a wide variety, so people with devotion to accomplishment could seek the joy of doing something very difficult and seeing their work make life more interesting or easy for themselves and others. The special “something” could be a rock wall, a small oil painting, or a great symphony. There is no emotion within the human soul more rewarding than the feeling of being needed and useful to others.
My Heaven is right here on earth. I don’t know why the really bad things were thrown in with the good, but maybe it was because we all must be tested in the hardest of struggles, to eliminate the evil, ignorance, and inequality that comes with the territory. I’m in over my head. I’m going to end this column right now and go watch a pro basketball game on television. Wonder if “a state of blessedness” includes watching TV sports?