Essay - God's Potion

this is going to be extra extra long. but it's worth reading it. (it's fiction..)

I was suddenly awakened by the sound of an enormously loud whistle. The noise sounded similar to that of a large ship docking into a harbor. Next the sound of rumbling metal filled my ears. As I opened my eyes I was temporarily blinded. These lights seemed brighter then the summer sun. I felt goosebumps rise on my spine. I knew this mysteriously noisy thing was tremendously close and headed directly toward me. The ground beneath me shook something fierce. I quickly got my senses together and recognized this noisy object as a freight train. It was now so close the strong smell of the fumes burned my nostrils. My heart beat increased rapidly. It pounded so hard I thought it was going to jump right out of my chest. The thoughts in my head spun wild.

I had experienced wild dreams before but nothing quite like this. I pinched myself to ensure I was awake. With a quick glance around I realized I awoke in a very dangerous place. I was positioned right in the middle of a train tunnel. I knew I had little time to react and get out of the path of this train. I realized in a flash my life could be over. I strained to get my body to move. I noticed my legs were folded underneath my body and were both completely numb. I guess I’d been there long enough for the circulation to my lower body to be cut off, this causing my legs to be completely asleep. I struggled to get them to move without any luck. I figured there was no way I was going to get out of the train’s path fast enough. I said a quick prayer in my head. Down deep I thought I was really way too young to die, but in this situation there didn’t seem to be any alternative. I closed my eyes for a split second. Suddenly I remembered the potion. I hurriedly reached into my pocket and pulled out the small bottle. I quickly opened it and dumped the liquid down my throat. I swallowed hard and continued to pray for a miracle.

My thoughts were instantly thrown into a tailspin. I felt dizzy and somewhat sick to my stomach. Sort of like the time I rode the monster roller coaster on a full stomach. My surroundings were now a blur and I don’t really remember what happened next.

Time seemed to pause for a moment. Strangely everything seemed to become very quiet… I must have passed out, as the next thing I recall was some large elderly gentleman towering over me. He cleared his throat and asked if I was okay. I wiped my brown curly hair out of my eyes and stared up at him. This had to rate right up there with one of the strangest things I had ever experienced. I was completely convinced the potion had worked, it was either that or I had already died and was on my way to heaven. Another thought then crossed my mind. Just maybe I was having a really weird dream with this guy in it? My doubts about being awake and on planet earth were quickly answered. I felt the cold rough hands of the guy standing over me trying to help me up. His voice was gruff as he spoke.

“Boy, you had better get out of the tracks before another train comes along. By the way, what is a young lad like you doing sleeping here anyway? Do your parents know where you are?” the man spoke to me like he was really concerned.

I tried to answer, but my mouth was entirely too dry to speak. My lips moved but my words were less than a whisper. He must have figured I couldn’t talk. He said he would help me get out of this place before I got seriously hurt. I attempted to stand up. My legs felt like they were suddenly made of a rubber hose. I had to admit he was very strong as he lifted me off the ground seemingly without an effort. I leaned on him and he wrapped his huge right arm around my shoulder. We slowly moved toward the exit stairs. He gently pushed me up the steps ahead of him. As we climbed to the top, I noticed the door we were about to enter led to the main lobby of the train station. I slowly stepped through the doorway. I turned around to thank this man for his help. He had suddenly vanished. Strange, I thought, where had he gone so quickly? It was just like a magic trick I had once witnessed at the local carnival. I figured he must have had something really important to do to just disappear and not even say goodbye. Realizing the fact I was safe, I really wanted to get home. I decided at this point I wasn’t going to spend the time to look for him or anyone else for that matter. I thought maybe I could return later on in the day to locate this guy and thank him for his help and kindness.

I strained my thoughts to recall what had just happened moments before. I remembered why I was in the train tunnel to begin with. Earlier in the day I had explored the tunnels with some of my friends. We had played hide and seek. For a group of young boys these tunnels were a really neat place for us to play. They were unexplored territory and we just couldn’t resist the temptation. Yes, it was foolish and somewhat dangerous, but as with most youth, we didn’t have any fear and didn’t know the limits of real danger. We were just a bunch of fearless boys seeking a mission of opportunity.

Anyhow the game we played had made up specific rules to follow. To begin, one of us was nominated to be the seeker. Rule number one was once when the seeker spotted someone they had to chase them down and touch them on the back. The first one caught had to be the seeker in round two. The last one caught always got a bigger head start on the next game. Of course being chased was a lot more fun than chasing someone else, so we all strived to be the last one caught in this game.

During my turn as the seeker I set out on a search for my friends. I spotted one of my friends about a hundred feet ahead of me. I quickly burst into action. I took off running as fast as I could toward him. Like a sprinter in a race I was determined to reach my destination in record time. My feet pounded on the ground below. I tried my hardest to catch up to him. Although I was in pretty good physical shape my friend was just a little faster then me. It didn’t take long before he gained some ground and got further ahead of me. He then turned a corner in the tunnel and disappeared. I figured he probably stopped to hide temporarily. I knew if I arrived soon enough I could catch him. I continued to put an all out effort to run faster. At one point I think my legs moved faster then I thought my brain would allow. I felt my heart pump fast with every step on the hard concrete floor. I was determined to catch up to my target. Just as I rounded another corner in the tunnel, my left foot suddenly slipped on something slick and I stumbled. Next my body sailed a few inches off of the floor and I slammed into the nearby wall. I crashed to the ground hard but not before bumping my head against the concrete wall. I hit the floor hard and this knocked me out temporarily. I don’t know how long I was actually out, but the next thing I recollect was the oncoming train.
I now stood in the safety of the train station and recalled these recent events. I reached in my pocket for the bottle that contained my potion. The bottle was still there, but was now empty. I suddenly felt a chill go through my body. The hair on the back of my neck stood up and goose bumps rose on my arms.

On one hand I was glad the potion had worked, but then again I felt a little disappointed. I realized I had just used my once in a life-time potion at the young age of ten years old. I remembered when my mother gave me this bottle and informed me of its power. I recall laughing at her. It took some convincing, but she finally persuaded me to carry it with me everywhere I went. “For your safety, you will thank me someday,” She said to me as she forced the bottle into my jeans pocket.

I recall when my mother explained to me about the power of this potion. Mother said this magic liquid was “God’s potion” for me to use when the time was right. She instructed me to use it only if I had no other choice. She made me promise to say a prayer just before and after taking it. She told me I only had one dosage to use. She said only to use it for an unusual situation, such as an incident I felt I couldn’t control. She cautioned me on the fact that once it was used it would be gone forever. Mother said the power of this potion wasn’t to be taken lightly. “God’s potion”, as she called it, was a very special gift to have and not everyone had it. The disadvantage, she would say, was only getting to use it once. She told me to be very selective and only use it when the time seemed right.

As a young child I wasn’t exactly sure what she meant at the time. Mother told me this potion could be used to change a life event, in other words to alter the outcome of a bad situation when all else had failed. Well, I would guess that’s exactly what it did.

As I walked home alone that afternoon, I felt like one of the luckiest kids on this planet earth. I had just survived a very dramatic incident. I said many thanks in my head to my mother for all of her advice and ensuring I carry this magic potion. I also said a prayer in out loud for being fortunate enough to have such a great mother. The potion mother had given me had worked like a charm. Had I not used the potion, I probably wouldn’t be standing here today telling this tale. That train would have surely run right over me, leaving nothing more than maybe my tennis shoes in its tracks.

After I arrived home that day, I entered the living room of our house and approached my mother. She stood up and greeted me half way across the room. I sensed she knew something spectacular had happened to me. I could feel my body tremble as I reached out to give her a big hug. She smiled and hugged me back with warm welcome arms. We stood there for what seemed like entirety just holding each other. It seemed weird because it was as if she already knew something wonderful had just happened to me. She waited for me to tell her rather then questioning me about it like normal.

I finally spoke out and told her about my experience earlier in the train tunnel. As I looked at her an enormous smile crossed her face. I thanked her for what seemed like a million times for educating me about the potion and convincing me to carry it.

Mother praised me for giving thanks, but of course she added the reminder of the dangers of playing in the train tunnel to begin with. I knew this was coming, but she really surprised me and didn’t harp on it very long. I let her know I was sorry for making her worry. I also told her I was sad that I had used my potion, because now I no longer had it.

Mother just grinned and assured everything would be okay. She was always like that. She seemed to know exactly what to say to help me feel better. She then took my hands in hers. She squeezed them gently and I felt the warmth of her love and concern. She looked me straight in the eyes and told me she had a confession to make. She motioned me to follow her into another room.

We entered the kitchen and I watched her as she reached under the sink and pulled out an empty bottle very similar to the one that contained my potion.

She then told me a story about when she was younger and her mother educating her on the magic power of the potion. Mother then confessed she had also learned the true secret of this great potion at a very young age. She said her mother had given her a bottle of potion with the same exact instructions I had received from her. Mother said it was when she was about eight years of age she had resorted to using her magic potion for the first time. Like me, she was just totally amazed at its power. Mother said at that time she vowed to educate her own children someday of this great secret.

I was totally confused at this point. She told me the time was right for her to share this wonderful secret with me. She reached up and turned on the faucet of sink and filled the bottle with tap water. She approached the cabinet nearby and took out some red food coloring, dumping just a touch in the bottle. She motioned for me to close my eyes. She then reached out for my hand and gently squeezed it. She whispered a short quiet prayer. She handled the bottled with care as she gently shook it up. She then handed me the bottle. I felt my hands tremble as I took it from her. I stood there with a completely dumbfounded look on my face.
Mother informed me she had a job for me to do. I shook my head like I didn’t fully understand. She looked me straight in the eyes and asked me if I remembered learning about the power of prayer through all of my childhood and church experiences.

“But mother, I drank the potion and know it worked. I would have died in those train tunnels today had it not been for the potion,” I said, trying to convince mother I felt very strongly about it working.

“Did you pray?” Mother asked me.

“Well, yes I did but…” I paused as she looked at me with her most serious eyes.

“Son, it wasn’t the potion that saved you,” She said.

“But mother…”

“Shhh”, she put her finger against my lips motioning my silence, “Hush now and listen closely to me son.”

She then informed me the bottle of “God’s potion” I received from her was exactly the same as the one she had just filled with only colored water. She explained to me the power of prayer was to give thanks, but if things really got out of control and one needed help they shouldn’t hesitate to pray for it.

Just then I realized what she was trying to convince me of. I experienced a similar form when I was lying in the train tracks. I felt cold chills run through my body and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. Wow! I thought. Was it the power of prayer that had saved me earlier today? I then recalled the moment I passed out just before the train arrived in the tunnel. As I woke up the elderly gentleman was stood over me. He must have pulled me out of the way just in time, but who was he and where did he come from? Mother’s explanation was he must have been an angel in disguise. She said he was surely sent down from heaven above and placed on earth just in time to save me. She reminded me I was one of God’s children and he would always look out after me. She said God would always be there no matter what, especially when I needed him most.

Mother reminded me not to abuse the power of prayer, but rather always be grateful and thank God for everything everyday. I really had a hard time believing everything she told me. Mother had a certain way of convincing me she was serious and that I really shouldn’t doubt her. A million and one thoughts filled my tiny little head. My brain appeared totally scrambled as these thoughts swirled around. I was really trying to grasp and process all of this information.

Even after all mother had said I still had my doubts. I decided what I needed to do. I was determined to return to the train station and locate the stranger who had saved my life. Of course when I mentioned this to mother, she spoke up instantly and tried to convince me not to go. She said it would be a waste of my time, but of course I wasn’t fully listening. At this point I only had one thing on my mind I felt was really important. So I began my mission of seeking out the truth.

I returned to the train station about an hour later. I was on a frantic search for this “angel in disguise”, as mother had called him. I remembered he wore a bright yellow slicker and shiny black boots, so I thought he should easily stick out in the crowd. I spent over an hour asking around and inquiring about him. Strangely not one person there, including the station manager, recalled seeing this guy.

This just can’t be so I thought. How could this guy be at the train station earlier and nobody but me be able to see him? I spent another half an hour searching around in and near the tunnels in an attempt to find my “hero”. Even with all of this I didn’t have any luck locating him. I was just about to give up searching and exit the train station. I turned to look around one more time. Surprisingly I noticed my mother standing just a few feet away. I figured she must have followed me to the train station just to ensure my safety on this journey. She slowly approached me with a broad smile on her face. I looked in her eyes and they were gleaming brightly. She then nodded her head toward me as if to confirm my question of doubt. I felt my heart beat increase. Within seconds it pounded inside so hard I thought it was about to jump out of my chest. I felt warm beads of sweat roll down the side of my head. Suddenly I knew mother had been right all along and I had been on an impossible mission.

Finally, once I accepted all of this as being the truth, I knew from that day forward my faith would be stronger than ever. Although I figured I would no longer need to carry a bottle of potion, I would anyway just for a constant reminder of my recent experience. I made a vow to share my knowledge of the great power above with others.

That wonderful warm afternoon, mother and I walked home together. We remained silent most of the way home. Once we entered our house she reminded me about the job she needed me to do. Of course I was readily willing to do whatever she needed. I thought it was my turn to pay her back something for all of the wonderful things she had done for me. Mother then handed me another bottle of “God’s potion” and informed me it was my turn to educate my younger brother about this wonderful gift. I gladly accepted this task and was really glad mom trusted me to do it.

Of course upon approaching my brother, like me, he thought all of this sounded pretty silly and unbelievable. I just know he will thank me someday when the time comes…once a believer, always a believer.

***The End***

Author: Roger Alan Worley