When you come to realize that something such as a longing belief that brings an old comforting joy that was locked away in the cellar of your mind for years. Only to be pulled out on those really bad rainy days to bring you some sunshine. Is really a thief with an extremely intense torchlight!

What do you do?

You find this out because for no reason ,you took the opportunity to bring that longing out of your cellar and finally take a good look at it on a clear and sunny day.

Without warning, the thief gathers what you think are all the memories that brought to you the longing and places them in a bag, looks you in the eye without saying a word and runs off into the now rainy day to never be seen again.

What do you do, now that the longing is gone and the memories vanquished?

So quickly you run down the dusty old creaking steps to the floor of your cellar and look for anything the thief may have forgotten. As you reach for the light switch, something startles you that’s seen from the corner of your eye. So quickly, you turn on the light and jump back in fear for you think you saw something there in front of you. You come to find out that standing there was your own reflection in an old mirror that you never seen before. You smile in relief as you stare with yourself looking back at you.

The smile turns to uncertainty as you hardly recognize yourself.

As you stare, you ponder in disbelief at your reflection, What happened? Where did the years go? Why did that thief take the only take the one thing that you always desired? Now enraged, you look around the room for anything that will bring you comfort, and the anger turns to a striking realization when you see the room is full of everything else that made you who you are.

The accomplishments, the disappointments, achievements, the hurt and pain, the love, hopes and dreams.

How long has it been since you last looked at all of the other things in your cellar? But yet, they are all still there, just where you left them.

Feeling overcome with sadness, fear and not knowing why. You feel your heart break open as you fall to your knees. The tears flow like a river from a melting ice field as you place your head into your hands.

You feel like a tiny dot on the horizon of someone’s distant memory.

This is something that has not happened in a very long time. A cleansing of the soul, forgiveness of yourself and to everything that helped you to become who you are today.

After awhile, like a child you look around the cellar at everything with your eyes wide open, taking everything in. Amazed, you see the memories that you thought the thief had taken. They are all still there!! And you think about it for a moment, you feel something come around in full circle and appreciate what was done.

What the thief actually took, was in-fact the clutter that blinded you from understanding, and in substitution of the clutter,

was placed that old mirror.

The thief was not a thief at all, but an old friend. Even after all these years without speaking to each other and still knows you better than you know yourself.

The longing belief turns into contentment with a better perception of understanding that all you ever wanted was closure.

And in all of its changing seasons,

You still believe

Love is real and someday you will find it again.

Thank you old friend

By Daniel Mattei

May 2008