the same way watching a Conan film counts as going to the gym.  But, I wanted to talk about theology.  Because Dante’s Comedy came into being – in vernacular – a generation or so before both Gutenberg and the so-called Protestant Reformation, the idea that there are three states after death became entrenched in the popular mind.  To we followers of Holy Mother Church, that’s crap:  there is only Heaven or Hell.  Purgatory, invented by publishers to sell more books, is just Heaven’s… entryway?  mudroom?  foyer?  It’s where you get yourself cleaned off and your shit together before coming further into the mansion for the grand party you were invited to.  Walking into that covered in shit and blood would be rather rude, what?

I thank God for revealing the Tradition of Purgatory to His Church.  If I really, honestly, believed that I had to be utterly perfect on this Earth to merit Heaven… suicide or Stalin seem to be the only responses to that.  Given my personal unresponsiveness to the need of people about me, I pray for a long, long stay in the Foyer before I join the Party.  Be rather rude if YHWH just let me in and while taking a flute of Champaign, I brushed past the Son with a muttered “…bloody wog!”

And that’s why most of my characters are finding their way there:  Purgatory.  Or, if you prefer, Guri (Glie). I’ve already written here, on this blog, shorts, where we see Nike, Maya, “Orloff” all having their moments.  Honestly, I CANNOT wait to see the sunshine and be just a little drunk to write the book where ALL of them are there!  Just tonight, I saw a little short between Emma (human) and Gordon (machine) of my most recent novel, Cursed Hearts, talking about the deaths of all their friends.

These blog posts keep me coming back to life, as it were.  Hoping for greater things, very soon.