Heaven is a House of Many Doors

Heaven is a House of Many Doors shares simple life stories.

Despite an Irish Catholic upbringing and an extended family filled with faith, I confess to years of wondering about God. Following the death of my father and so many of his friends & colleagues during the response to the 9/11 WTC attacks, I confess to a fall from faith.

I landed with a thud. And when I landed I was godless.

Getting to my feet, I drifted, asking, "Without a god and without a belief in a heavenly afterlife, is this all there is? This life life on earth? This is it?"

Over time, the question was answered as simply as it was asked, "This is it."

If there is no thereafter, then this is it.

This moment, this speck of time, is all there is.

This is my lone existence. And if this is it, then this is my heaven. When I die, I'll go nowhere. When I die, I'll leave heaven.

And this is beautiful. This discovery, this life in heaven worth living, is the collateral beauty echoing from the trauma of 9/11.

And liberating, for of every moment is a moment in heaven, then every moment is precious. This concept seeps through me. For example, if I am in heaven, then I really don't want to be a selfish @sshole, do I? If I'm spending my life in heaven, I'd like my time to be tranquil. And your time should be tranquil as well.

Yet, who's to say I'm right and my entire family is wrong. Heck, pretty much everyone I know sides with my family. In addition to the entirety of my family, the preponderance of friends and colleagues believe. The wisdom of the crowd says I'm wrong. The numbers say I'm wrong.

Yet, I remain firm with my footing following the fall from faith.

Perhaps we are all correct.

Could it be, there's more than one way to experience heaven? Might heaven be a house of many doors? If the numbers prove correct and I am wrong, might god be that powerful and thoughtful and accepting?

Oh, I hope so.

Hope aside, "Thank you," for sharing a bit of time with me during life in heaven.