Standing on the bridge over Nanue Stream Mort watched as the car careened in slow motion from the roadbed to the gully far below. The vehicle rotated front to back three times before striking the ground with a not-so-glamorous loud metal thunk. No rising dirt or Hollywood flaming explosion added drama to the scene. Turning back, he caught a glimpse of Lower Nanue falls, the object of his glance prior to witnessing the car's plunge. Staring at the crushed car from a height of over a hundred feet, chance for the occupants’ survival appeared slim.
A nagging incompleteness to the situation gave him pause to look down the road. The expected black ribbon was shrouded by a curious specter. A translucent mist, not permitting its contents discernment, floated towards the bridge. In this land fog seldom occurs, yet for some reason the spectacle seemed natural. As the curtain came close enough to nearly engulf him, Mort felt compelled to enter the mist but he hesitated. Looking back again at the falls and then at the car Mort was aware of a long, wispy tendril extending from the car and, oddly enough, he noted the ribbon was also attached to him. That sight startled him until he noticed he was suspended above the bridge, over the chasm. With these other degrees of bewilderment and discomfort Mort felt a sudden rush of weightlessness similar to the feeling he used to experience in the first few seconds of a plane’s power dive.
Mort realized that he made a fatal mistake when, as he was driving across the bridge, he looked back at the falls. During many trips along this road he chided himself to pull off and view the pristine gift that the falls offered, but each time he did not want to waste the time by stopping...a single, quick glance at the water would not hurt...well, it didn't hurt a bit...he didn't feel a thing.
By now the mist nearly engulfed him and Mort noted that the feeling, instead of akin to a cold and damp fog, was warm, peaceful, and natural...the right place to be, a true essence of being. Mort pulled back from the mist's embrace and realized that this would not do. There was much more to accomplish, friends and family matters not fulfilled, the countless thoughts not spoken and shared with those who matter. Mort decided to take advantage of the freedom from terrestrial bonds and make one last visit to share parting, undying feelings. However, as he began withdrawing from the mist, it was clear that a choice had to be made...he had to move through the mist and become one with humankind's’ shared destiny or...remain earthbound and forever seek resolution…
