Magdalena by Candi Sary

Author:Candi Sary
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Regal House Publishing
Published: 2023-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

23

Decades after the miraculous appearance of the Virgin Mary, there was a second extraordinary sighting at the same fountain.

Like every other Sunday morning, the ten o’clock Mass ended and the congregation exited through the main door. People gathered out front to socialize on the sidewalk. As always, I sat with the Sisters in a side pew and we exited through the door that led to the courtyard. Some sort of event was planned that day, and so the Sisters hurried off to the auditorium while I made my way through the courtyard alone.

There was a slight drizzle. I kept my head down as I walked, but when I reached the fountain, I glanced up and saw a man in a long black robe. Though his hair was now long and fell softly past his shoulders, I recognized him immediately. It was the ghost of Benjamin! I had not been able to see him when he visited my house, but there at the blessed fountain he came through with unbelievable clarity.

My smile verged on tears as I watched the man I hadn’t seen since our last day together at the library. He pulled pennies from his robe pocket and tossed them into the fountain, closing his eyes as if making a wish or saying a prayer. I thought of Beyond the Veil’s penny article and believed this sighting was his way of telling me he was always around.

“Oh, Benjamin,” I called to him, regretting my neglect. I’d let all those lemons mold away, thinking only of the girl. “I’m sorry for ignoring you.”

He turned toward me. The way he looked at me, it seemed as if he thought I was the ghost. I wish I could say he was simply surprised or in disbelief that I could see him, but in truth, I must admit his expression was that of pure horror. It made no sense.

What made less sense was Father Candido’s greeting as he approached the fountain. “Brother Benjamin, how do you like our little church?”

“It’s lovely,” Benjamin said, keeping his eyes on me. The horror in his expression had turned to something more like pain.

Three details struck me: “Brother” Benjamin, the black robe, and the realization Father Candido could see him too. These three indisputable facts transformed the miracle of Benjamin’s ghost into a greater miracle. Benjamin was alive.

It’s a strange sensation when the brain absorbs new information that doesn’t fit in with the beliefs already there. It’s like trying to push another puzzle piece into an already completed puzzle. The sharp edges poked at my brain.

By itself, learning that Benjamin was alive might seem like a wonderful revelation, but given the circumstances, the implications were difficult to digest. It meant Benjamin had left me, mid-story, without saying goodbye. It meant Magdalena had been lying to me about the ghost in my house. And it meant the ghost in my house was not the kindly Benjamin, but a stranger. I’d never wished death upon a person, but at that moment I thought how much simpler life would be if Benjamin had remained dead.

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