The Medieval Good Castle of Medulla Oblongata

Once, in a time that was not, there was a castle of the mind, a good castle in medieval times, which was a time that followed after the least of evil times, which came after the void of evil times, when there was no evil at all. But evil was very present in this time and it was difficult to find anyone who had virtue.

The Good Castle of Medulla Oblongata was a refuge for the spiritual and the creative. The castle protected those souls from the empty, vacant spirit, which lay in wait outside. The land grew dark and a great void was sweeping across the land.

The void could be described as the lack of all that was good and special. Those who were in the great void had no gifts, just skills, no joy, only endurance, which was fading fast. If the void continued to swallow up the countryside, there would be no place left to create that which would inspire hope and the people would soon perish, maybe not on the outside, but in their hearts, where life is.

Evil could not enter into the castle, because the castle was enveloped by a Spirit most Holy and evil could not exist in His Presence. Anyone, who would know the castle's secrets, had to pass a series of tests, any one of which could stop them from knowing the secret to the Power of The Creator and His Creation.

As each good soul would enter the castle, they would see a gate that opened and close quickly, which would barr their entrance, until they uttered the secret words, “I would give”, after which, the gate would open and be still, so they could continue on their journey toward the heart of the castle.

Twenty yards passed the gate, the souls who were seeking The Power of Creation, had to pass under two revolving crossed swords, which would disassemble and chase an welcome visitor out of the castle. In order to pass under them, a soul must be honest, not only speaking truth … but living it.

Passed the revolving swords, hanging high above the castle foyer, was a golden breastplate with a powerful ruby in it's center. The ruby gave the breastplate power to shoot twin lightning bolts at any soul, who was not filled with love for their life and the life of their neighbors.

Most castle sojourners would be stopped at this point.

Next are The Guardians of Faith, two giant knights, standing twenty feet tall, who would come alive and prevent all who would pass, unless they had faith in themselves and the gifts they were given.

If one passed The Guardians of Faith, they were greeted by The Red Wizards Of Edendorth, who searched the hearts of every soul who dared to hope for creative freedom. If the wizards did not find the hope they sought, they touched the creative seeker with The Staff Of The Faithless, casting a spell of apathy upon them. Afterwards, the once seekers of creative power, no longer wanted to create. They just wanted to live ordinary lives, until they died, which is a fate worse than death … to the truly gifted.

Those who passed the wizards stood in amazement at the allegoriacal images of past and future events, seen on the castle walls. Stunning and awesome are the images and a little terrifying. The hopeful creative souls may ask the castle anything that was on their mind and then stare into it's walls to see the answers come alive in the stone.

If they passed all of the previous tests, they would have to face one more challenge … The Swordsmen Of Misdirection. The swordsman to the left is named Fear and the one to the right, Doubt. They work together, which makes them all the more ominous.

To pass them is simple, but it takes all one's courage to do it. All one has to do is walk pass them, looking forward, without paying them any attention.

If a soul can pass through “The Swordsmen Of Misdirection”, they will see a clear, mirror like substance at the end of the castle, which the seeker must walk through. Once through, the seeker finds themselves outside the castle, in the same place they were before they had entered.

But what was different, was that they now know the Power Of The Creator was inside them all along, The Power to give life to themselves and The Freedom to share that life with others.

They learned that the True Creator does not create for himself, but to give to others. That as they are honest to themselves, it is passed on through their creations, which gives their work meaning.

They now understand that Love is The Conduit Of Power for themselves and to others they influence and help along the way.

They learned that Faith is the pathway to the impossible.

They discovered that hope is the shield to negative thoughts, thoughts crafted by evil, to put an end to the promise of a creative soul's life.

They learned that all answers are inside them. They were put there by design.

They learned that Fear and Doubt are to be ignored. That if you overcome them, they have served their purpose.

And finally, they learned that the time to start creating is now. Like light dispels darkness, the creative soul replaces the void in the hearts of others with life.

Creating life … what is greater than that!

These spiritual stories were written by Mark Edgemon who has been writing for 30 years. He writes and publishes short stories, articles, poetry and scripts as well as, produces audio comedy productions for over 700 radio stations nationwide.