Chapter 21

 

The cow came over to her dead calf, smelled it, pawed it with a hoof and mooed softly. Then her other calf came over and continued suckling. The mother turned away from her dead calf and started chewing her cud. Yahweh and Satan looked on.

"That's the way things are, isn't it, Father?"

 "Yes, my son."

"And you can't change it, can you?"

"No, my son."

"So what happened?"

"I changed. Even immortals change. I can no longer do what I once did."

"And why is that?" asked Satan.

"Because even I am part of something else."

"But you are All in All."

"Yes, but as I said, this creature you call Father is part of something else, just as you are."

"And what is that, Father?"

"Existence itself. The going and coming. Being and non- being. Even I play my role and now my role is done. I retire from the stage. You know, they say timing is everything. They also say it's better to leave when the audience says, 'What, already?' instead of 'At last!' So while talk of my death is greatly exaggerated, it is true that it's time for me to leave."

"But where will you go, Father?"

"Maybe we'll stay right here. With a little work it could be a pretty nice place."

"Well," said Satan getting up, "I guess we'd better burn the calf seeing how you've failed its resurrection."

"Ouch," said Yahweh. "Now that hurt."

"It was meant to," said Satan. "I don't forget easily."

"That's my line," said Yahweh with a smile as he let Satan help him get up.

"My word," he said as he struggled to his feet, "I get rustier with every millennium!"