Solomon's Private File #145
These stories about Stephen and Solomon take place starting in
1950's. Stephen wrote about his life in letters to a penpal, and then
in a secure blog, in case he lost his memory again, in the master
computer in his school for gifted students, which he started attending
in 2016 in a new incarnation, until his death. Now his son Solomon is
attending the same school, and is writing in his own secure blog for
his future incarnations.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
Solomon is 20 in this story, in the Fall of 2046.
Solomon's Private File #145 "Meeting with Pope Paolo"
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I asked for a secret meeting with Paolo. I said, "Do I call you the
Pope-Daddy now?" He grinned and said, "I hope not." I said, "Thanks for
your positive comments for the Nigeria affair." He said, "While it was
something only you could have said, it was also what I wished I could
have said." I said, "I think a lot wished. My strange position helped,
and that they couldn't lock the doors against me. I port into their God
houses, they have to accept me and my mouth." Chuckles. I said, "Your
predecessor made some er, creative rulings. Except for keeping your
name, which I like, you haven't. Coward?" He grinned and said,
"Actually, yes. I'm waiting for more of the old Cardinals to retire,
before I do as I think you want me to. That is to soften our position
on homosexuals." We discussed the issue, and I gave him a lot of
relevant social, psychological and biological information on the
subject. I said, "Dad gave some of that to the Mormons before they
voted. You can tell your Cardinals that they shouldn't want to seem
less intelligent than them." He grinned and said, "Constant tactic for
both sides. I think, however, that while we might not oppose their
marriage, we would not agree to perform them." I said, "I understand.
"Oh my God!" Then he covered his mouth in embarrassment. I tried to act
like I hadn't heard that, which he appreciated.
He said, "We can't have Priests leaving the Church to marry. And two
Priests at once? We have to allow it, but voluntary only. You've given
me a very effective argument! Thank you." I said, "You know there are
going to be Priests and member churches that will disagree with such a
change." He said, "Yes. It will not be an order, but a position of the
Vatican, and voluntary for churches, but there WILL be an order that no
church or church supported organization is to act against the human and
civil rights of any person, including homosexuals." I said, "Bravo!" He
was embarrassed. I said, "If you want, when the time is right, we could
discuss this issue on a live TV show. You know I can manage it so you
would have to agree with me, which you can tell your Cardinals later,
as an excuse." He grinned and said, "Already done that. What are some
of the tactics you would employ?" I said, "Ten Commandments rule.
Homosexual acts aren't mentioned, but adultery is, and you don't fight
against that." He said, "That's one." I said, "There is a list of sins
in the Bible, and what to do to remedy them. Do you do any of that
now?" He said, "We don't. Giving animals to Priests won't work well in
the cities." I said, "Is homosexual behavior among them? Is it even
listed as a real sin?" He said, "It only shows that God doesn't like
it, which is mostly what abomination means." I said, "It's not as if
they're screwing HIM." He tried to look scandalized. I said, looking
critically at him, "Not your best effort." He had to chuckle.
I said, "Who says gay couples actually have sex, which is what you
oppose? Is it your opinion that people should marry ONLY to have sex?"
He said, "Oh, that's a big one!" I looked down, and he had to laugh. I
said, "You KNOW what Hawk is doing." He laughed more. I said, "People
marry because they love each other, and that doesn't have to involve
sex. Children can be a part of that relationship, too. Some gays
already have them naturally, and some adopt. Would God want His Church
to harm children for what their parents do in their own bedroom?" He
said, "Valid argument." I said, "Sexual orientation, which causes
sexual feelings, is biological, not choice. Most gay parents do not
have children who are gay. They couldn't make them what they are not,
even if they wanted to. What harms children most, having gay parents,
or having none? Or having parents who are committing adultery?
Actually, parents who fight over that, cause the most damage in
children, more than not having parents, and is the biggest cause of
runaway street kids, after physical abuse." He said, "I didn't know
that. All this isn't necessary to convince me, but it could help me to
convince others."
I said, "You're relatively young for a Pope. And you know we won't
let you be killed or silenced. Do this soon, and it could become
permanently accepted long past your tenure." He said, "It should. We
should support equal human rights!" I said "And Aliens, too?" I said,
"When they are here, and to cause them to want to be here." I said,
"One more tactic. If somebody says, 'But allowing gays to marry, then
it will devalue all marriages!' The reply is, "Then your marriage, if
it could be so influenced by the marriage of another you have never
met, is not a marriage of true love." He said, "Wow! That is profound,
and all too true." I said, "And in full equality, gays should have to
suffer through divorces, just like everybody else." He grinned and
said, "We can't use that one, but you can." I said, "There is no
divorce in my group." He nodded.
I said, "Advance on the news. The Dalai Lama, my sister Kamala, is
secretly married. I know, I performed it, and she is expecting a baby.
That can't be kept secret for long, because she wants to raise her son
at her home in Lhasa." He said, "That IS news. Going to be a big change
there. Is the father and husband going to remain secret?" I said, "Yes.
We don't want to dilute her position, and we don't want more of us in
the public eye and nose. Yes, he's one of of us, but that will stay a
secret, too." He said, "From America?" I said, "Trust?" He said,
"Absolutely!" I said, "From another dimension." He said, "Wow!" I said,
"I think they said that a few times." He chuckled.
I said, "I just thought of something. Hawk is bisexual. If he would
marry a man, would you publicly bless it?" He was surprised and
thoughtful. He said, "I would want to, very much. I respect and love
him. Will he?" I said, "I don't know, but it's possible. Oh, he just
told me to tell you he is in love with a man not in our group, and they
are committed, but haven't thought beyond that. I can say that is wise.
It might affect his partner's career, either way." He said, "Would you
tell me who?" I said, "Been given permission. Galagos the artist." He
said, "I know of him! Wonderful artist! He was on the moon with you." I
said, "That's when we all met. One of his current projects is er, me."
He grinned and said, "We've been approached, in regard to a painting of
you." I said, "Would you have asked, if you had seen them?" He said, "I
think, yes." I said, "We told him that." He chuckled.
He said, "I have made a decision. I WILL bless his marriage if it
happens, if they want to be public about it." I said, "This time he's
not laughing, but crying. Not in sadness, though." We stood, and hugged
with love. I said, "Got this for your Cardinals, too. Anytime." He
said, "When it's right." We expressed our love and farewells. I ported
to Hawk, and we hugged with love. Then Galagos, who Hawk had been
updating. I said to him, "I see you've gone nudist. I can't disagree
with that, but you still have a habit of wiping your brushes on, well,
now, you. And it seems to transfer a little." He had to laugh, and so
did Hawk. I ported my clothes off, and said, "Now I'm natural. Know why
I chose that sort of uniform?" He said, "No, actually." I said,
"Because I really dislike clothes, and only a little less in choosing
what to wear. That special cloth is the most comfortable I could make,
and when I wear it in public, I'm recognized without having to perform
with humor." He said, "But don't you like saying those things?" I said,
"Shhh." They laughed.
We sat on a big sofa. He said to me, "I've been keeping up on what
you've been doing. I didn't appreciate before how wise you are." I
said, "So I'm not just a hot body now?" He said, "Exactly. I admit I
had a crush on you, but now that I know more of you, it's mostly
admiration, respect, and basic love." I said, "It's not me who's
changed." He said, "Yes. I've matured." I said, "And so has your art."
He said, "Which you knew it would." Hawk looked surprised, which he
noticed. Gal poked him and said, "You didn't know I figured out who
managed this? He can't help but to manage everything around him, and
with his knowledge and wisdom, I can be only eternally grateful for who
he is, and how he's helped us to love each other." I said, "Wow!" They
grinned at me, through their tears. We all hugged with love.
In my office at the Bureau, I had a message that an agent was
requesting to see me. Ivanna and Mom opposed it, but I agreed to see
him. I told them, "He's calm and not unpleasant now. It's alright." I
was at my desk, instead of the informal area, when he walked in. I
asked him to sit. I said to him with a little smile, "You asked to see
me. Cudda sent ya a picture." He relaxed, from being a little tense. I
said, "So, how've you been?" He said, "I don't know what to say." I
said, "Well, except for that. Come on, don't dwell on the past. It can
do that very well all by itself. Learn from it and move on, or it will
keep moving on YOU." He said, "That's wise." I said, "And I have to
keep listening to that, too. You don't know how tempted I am at times,
to say something really stupid, and shock everybody." He had to smile,
and he said, "Could you?" I opened my mouth, and nothing came out. Then
I said, "I guess not. Probably not needed. Other people do more than
enough of it for us all. We should still listen, though. I've lived
many bad lives where I was really evil. With who I am now, I've learned
more from them than when I was good. It's like chess. You learn more
from losing than winning. We make mistakes SO we can learn from them.
If I'm wise now, it's because of all the times I wasn't, before. That's
so for everybody. Yes, you, too."
He nodded, trying to hold back tears. I said, "So, how's your future
coming along?" He had to think about that, before he said, "I have to
hand it to you, you do know how to say a lot with a little, and make
people think about what they should. I've changed, and my future with
it. That's been noticed, and there are hints of another promotion. I
don't know if I'm ready for it." I said, "You aren't. Ha! I surprised
you! Good." He had to smile. I said, "We are seldom ready for
promotions, which is why they're there. Think about it." He did. Then
he said, "I think I get it. We grow into the position. We're promoted
for our potential!" I said, "It has to be so, in advancement. Well, you
weren't in that position before, so HOW could you be ready for it?
Sometimes the reason is more of circumstance. I lead my group, only
because I'm just a little better, mostly by being born a little before
the rest of the current generation. It sure wasn't my choice! I'm a
researcher and teacher, by nature. I had to force myself to learn to be
a leader. That improved all of me, so I became a good one, at least in
the opinion of some. It's tough, but necessary. When we are called to
serve that way, it's a privilege and an honor. Those who work for us
deserve our best, and we are motivated to create that best and give it
to them. We aren't perfect, but we all know that. We improve, because
that's what life demands." He stared at me with respect and awe.
I said, "You've improved. Those above you who've noticed it are not
likely to allow that to go to waste. You'll just have to live with that
so horrible and unasked for recognition." He had a mix of emotions for
that. I said with a smile, "Now go out there and get to work!" He
smiled in return, and we stood. I offered to hug him, and he accepted,
and then walked out in a daze. Mom, Ivanna, and Galya ported in and
kissed and hugged, me. I said, "Still want to doubt me?" They looked
surprised. Mom said, "I guess that was it." Galya said with admiration,
"You handled that better than anybody else could have. I didn't know
that one of the reasons he had for seeing you was regarding his own
insecurity about being promoted." I said, "I didn't either, but it was
on the list of possibilities. When it showed, I added it to my er,
presentation. I really ran the session hard, so he didn't have the
opportunity to disagree with me, or become maudlin. We went past it
like a speeding bullet." Ivanna said, "That you did. Amazing!" More
kisses and hugs.
A woman came in for evaluation. I looked at her file, and said, "A
diver! We need those. Hard to keep." She said, "I suspected." I said,
"Lack of adventure, so they leave. Very odd and unstable job market.
When they discover how wrong they were, they're usually too old to come
back to us. They change careers, or head South and open dive schools
for idiotic tourists, and try to believe they lead satisfying lives."
She said, "Wow!" I nodded. She said, "You really care about them, er,
us." I said, "Part of being a shrink." We did the tests. She was highly
approved.
Then Brian walked in. I said, "Brian! This is a surprise. But you're
without your older appendage." He laughed. He said, "I'm doing research
for one of my classes, and thought I should stop by and say hello." I
said, "And you have. You're looking well. How's Beth?" He said, "We
broke up, and then that didn't work, so we plan to get married soon." I
said, "A breakup that didn't work. Wow!" He grinned. I said, "Marriage
is fun. Er, often." We chuckled. I said, "How are you going to do it?"
He said, "She wants a big wedding." I said, "And you obviously don't.
Really not unusual. Might have some publicity, from the Museum and Moon
things." He said, "We might. She wants that, too, and I don't." I said,
"Bypass that and go straight to the divorce?" He chuckled and said,
"We'll compromise. She gets what she wants." I said, "That's usually
the way it works. I'm happy for your love." He said, "Thank you. We're
both Catholic, so it will be that kind of wedding. We want to invite
you, but we realize you shouldn't come." I said, "Well, not in front of
everybody!" He laughed hard.
He said, "One of your best!" I said, "I try. I shouldn't be there.
Weddings are about the Bride. Groom is just a prop. Guests shouldn't
take away from her moment in the spotlight. But, gifts are another
matter. Hey, stop that. You know I don't value them more than the
thought is worth. And some poking at people with them. Got a registry
list yet?" He said, "We don't. No date yet." I said, "So I can get in
ahead of time and commit to a full formal dinner set and flatware. No,
I actually want to do this. Haven't before. Will be fun, watching their
eyes pop out, when she announces it at the reception, and shows off
samples. Careful where you walk." He laughed. I said, "Have Beth get
together with me to choose how it will be. You know she wouldn't let
you have a word in edgewise." He chuckled and said, "Right! That
doesn't bother me." I said, "Good for a happy marriage. Oops, my own
wife heard that." He laughed. I said, "Want to meet her?" He said,
"Could I? Please." Galya ported in, and I introduced them. They hugged.
He said, "Wow!" I said, "I really agree with you!" She poked me. She
said, "I like the idea of the gift. It will be from both of us, but it
won't have my name included, just 'wife'." I said, "But a great wife."
We hugged and kissed. We both hugged and kissed Brian, and he left,
feeling very happy.
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Grant
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