We all sat facing forward in a dark cinema.
How did I get here?
I had absolutely no recollection of traveling to this unfamiliar, old movie house.
I could see several other people in the theater, but couldn’t fully make out their faces.
One of them reminded me of an old movie star I had seen in several films. She had died tragically, I believe.
The room grew darker and the screen lit up.
Suddenly, a feeling of melancholy swept over me, like when you remember a lost love.
All of the other spectators sat facing forward, patiently awaiting the film.
A woman in the front row caught a glimpse of me out of the corner of her eye. She gave me a mischievous grin.
She waited until the screen went dark for a moment, then got up and moved closer to where I was seated.
The melancholy grew.
She directed her striking, dark eyes at me and said,
“You were my favorite” in a thick French accent.
She held her hand out to me, embraced it warmly and tightly, then shifted her focus back to the screen.
I grew more and more confused as the film abruptly brought our audience into a delivery room in a hospital. A child was being born.
The others gasped and clenched their chests in awe as this new life emerged. They all seemed so deeply invested.
I watched closely, hoping I would gain more clarity if I paid attention.
I didn’t notice the woman who looked like the old movie star move closer to me and the French lady.
She sat directly behind me then leaned forward to whisper in my ear.
“Thank you. You did so many of the things I never got a chance to do.”
It was her.
My heart began to beat so fast, I could hear it pounding inside my head.
We all watched as a mother held her child for the first time.
The French woman turned to me and half-jokingly remarked,
“Maybe this one will be kind to us.”
How could she know that? Us?
Tears began to fill her eyes. I felt mine well up too.
I turned around to see the movie star wiping away tears as well, and I understood.
We watched as our most recent incarnation entered the world to continue on into this realm.
We watched and cheered and cried and hoped and laughed collectively.
One soul. Many lives.
I always knew my heaven would be a cinema.
