Okay! I’m back! aaand on to the storyyyy!

                                                                   CHAPTER THREE

I was amazed.  The trip only took a few seconds? Wow! As I stepped out of the machine, it faded away.  So cool! I thought.  I looked around.  I seemed to be in some sort of garden.  I bounced on the soft grass.  There seemed to be no weeds.  I glanced around.  The temperature was perfect; I wasn’t sweating or freezing.  (And that’s a pretty good feat for someone in an itchy wool coat!) I sniffed the air. Hmmm, I thought.  The smell was nice, like hollyhocks and bluebells.  And there was the trees! loaded with fruit, lush and very tall.  I saw a monkey, I think, in one. Suddenly, a lion appeared out of nowhere! I was scared to death! But it looked at me like ‘Hi! Are you new?’  and ran off.  I blinked.  Lets see, I thought. I’m in a place where it’s perfectly warm, beautiful, and the meat-eaters supposedly don’t eat meat.  Hmmm. This could only be one place.  Eden! I couldn’t believe it! I was in the Garden of Eden! I had listened to Rachel’s family worships enough to know the details.  Eden was beautiful.  God created everything there, including humans.  He let them name all the animals and told them to not eat from the tree of good and evil.  Eve did, and so did Adam.  They had to leave the Garden, but with a promise that someday, one of their descendants would save the human race.  They passed on that hope to their children who passed it on their children, who… Well, you get the picture. Anyway, I was ecstatic! I would get to see everything, and… I stopped being ecstatic.  I didn’t want to see Eve get tempted.  And give in.  And then see Adam give in! It was so sad.  I dropped my head.  I wasn’t so happy now.  Suddenly, I saw a movement.  Was that…. Her? I squinted.  Yup.  That had to be her. Long hair, pretty face… A robe of light!? Wow.  I guess that robe of life was visible to everyone, not just Adam and Eve.  It was so cool, the way it shimmered and sparkled in the afternoon sun.  I sighed.  Just get it over with, get it done. I’ll watch, but I’m very sure it wont be pretty. Just then, I saw a movement in the tree Eve was moving to close to.  I closed my eyes.  A voice, sinister if anything, yet smooth, like a salesman that’s trying to sell you a shady deal, spoke.  “Did God really say that you could not eat the fruit?” I could not believe it! The snake was TALKING!!! And it had wings! And it was picking the fruit and eating it! Eve looked startled, and a bit guilty.  “Well- He said t-that if we ate the fruit, we would die.” “Look at me.  I’m eat the fruit.  I’m not dead. Eve looked thoughtful.  “If you eat of this fruit, you will know right from wrong.  You will gain wisdom and know secrets.  You will be in the same place as the Most High God.” He said the last part sarcastically. “Well- he did call this place the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Maybe-” “You are correct, my dear.  He did. And since, well, I hate to break the news, but, God wants you to be ignorant.  He doesn’t want you to have fun, to smell the roses along the way.” I saw him pick a fruit and hand it to Eve. “Try it! You will love it.  It tastes… wonderful.” I saw Eve reach, hesitate, and pick up the fruit. She turned it over in her hand.  Then, she took a bite. Her eyes lit up.  She grabbed a fruit off the tree and ran to find Adam.