The Ghost of Zeilba

[Preety_India]

Then out of nowhere i can see something, a shadow. I'm too exhausted to even make out what this really is. 

As the figure comes closer I'm petrified looking at it. 

The figure motions me to stay quiet 

This is how it looks. 

As soon as it is closest to me, I stand there frozen. 

 

[Preety_India]

He gets closer and closer. 

And then he says, "I'm Oswald." 

I reply, "Oswald! " 

"yes, Oswald!" 

"you can call me Ossy!" 

I'm too frozen by his demeanor and appearance to say anything. 

He tells me this is his home. A place of dead souls, skulls everywhere. 

He grabs me by my arm and takes me to a place that looks like an Ancient temple. 

 

 

[Preety_India]

The Ancient temple looked like this. 

 

 

Just pillars and pillars. I am standing in between the pillars.. 

And Oswald holds my hand and tells me that I'm safe. 

I am absolutely terrified. 

It's all dark. I'm hungry and sleepy. 

I don't want to go back to Rosa's house. 

That's too far anyway now. 

I tell Oswald that I'm too tired. 

Oswald hands me an apple and tells me that whenever I get hungry I can ask him for an apple. 

The apple looks translucent and shiny. 

I eat it and I instantly feel better. 

Oswald then grabs me again and takes me to an adjacent room within the temple. It has a bed and beautiful curtains. He tells me that from now on I'll be sleeping in this room and he will be in the room opposite to the temple. He instructs me that if I need something then I can ask him. 

 

 

 

[Preety_India]

After that I fell asleep. It was just a short nap. I woke up.. 

I was feeling lonely. 

I was looking for Oswald. 

 

He was nowhere. 

Of course Oswald was a ghost. 

But he had put me to ease by letting me know that he meant no harm. 

 

[Preety_India]

 

I ran to the corridor. Outside it was silent and peaceful. 

I slowly entered the main area of the temple. And to the opposite side I could see this castle like structure 

I decide to enter the main room of the castle. 

 

As soon as I enter the main room, I'm greeted by Oswald 

He asks me if I need something. And I tell him that I am hungry again. He hands me an apple, the same kind he had given me before. 

I eat that apple and I feel refreshed. 

 

[Preety_India]

Then Oswald tells me to sit into a reclining chair. And I do as he says. 

After some time all lights are off. It's pitch dark with only a candle for company. 

Oswald is standing beside me. 

He is holding a book. 

 

 

 

[Preety_India]

 

Oswald reads out aloud to me. 

"If understanding as such is explicated as our power of rules, then the power of judgment is the ability to subsume under rules, i.e., to distinguish whether something does or does not fall under a given rule.”

Then Oswald looks up at me.. 

" we need to analyze the Transcendental features of experience that enable judgement. The cognitive power of judgement does not have a Transcendental structure. In order for judgement to be possible, a number of principles need to be true. Judgement is only possible if the mind is able to recognize the components in the diverse and disorganized data of sense that make those sensations an instance of concept or concepts. even the necessary conformity of objects to natural law arises from the mind. "

Oswald looks at me again. I nod my head in agreement. 

 

[Preety_India]

Oswald then ends it by saying, 

"it's necessary to create peace." 

I nod in agreement again. 

 

[Preety_India]

Then I ask Oswald 

"tell me about death. What do you think about death?" 

Oswald laughs wildly.

Oswald replies, "Every one of us will die. Everything anyone of us will ever have created will turn to dust in the end. The important thing is that you are alive now. That all of this, as crazy as it can be sometimes, exists right now. It is truly a gift." 

I ask "do you ever fear anything, Oswald?" 

Oswald replies, "when you fear nothing, everything is beautiful." 

 

[Preety_India]

"Call it emptiness Preety. That's the thing that haunts people more than death." 

I look at Oswald and I can sense the truth in his voice. His voice is soothing. 

"Oswald, that could not be further from the truth." 

 

"yes Preety. When you realize the beauty of little things, even watching trees blowing a little in the breeze becomes a transcendent experience." 

"There's a beauty that you're missing out on. There's a peace that you're missing out on." 

 

Edited June 6, 2021 by Preety_India

[Preety_India]

"love, beauty and peace are such beautiful things Oswald." 

"you have to create it," replied Oswald.