A Friend of A Friend by Never You Mind Who
I want to tell you about a friend of mine. His name is Isaac. I met him back in college when we were roommates. He was completely obsessed with religion and was a theology major. Yet he described himself as a spiritual agnostic. I guess he’s what one might call a “seeker,” one of those folks who tries to learn everything they can about spirituality in hopes of understanding it.
The nightstand by his bed had a leaning tower of books and over time the stack only grew higher and higher. His studies turned him into somewhat of a walking encyclopedia. Isaac was always spouting off nerdy history facts and sacred scriptures, anything from the iconography of Hindu deities, the history of the Christian Churches, to what medieval peasants used in attempts to ward off vampires.
Isaac could quote long memorized passages of various texts including The Quran and the Bhagavad Gita without consulting them. He knew a lot about the history of religion and could explain complex theological notions in simple terms. In addition to being an endless source of information, he was a man filled with questions. We had many deep conversations into the night hours. His erratic sleeping schedule even began to affect mine and caused me to be late for class on occasion.
There was about a month where he thought Buddhism was the one and only true path. Some days he’d be sure that he had found the answer, the next day he’d be stuck in the middle again and lost. He would sometimes quote the paranormal author, Charles Fort, who said: “I conceive of nothing, in religion, science, or philosophy, that is more than the proper thing to wear, for a while.”
I enjoyed Isaac’s company and our talks, so much so that rumors got started about us being in a relationship together, but these weren’t true of course. I sympathized with his plight and his journey of self-discovery. It’s a process that a lot of folks go through especially around this time in their lives.
When college ended we went our separate ways, but we decided to stay in touch. Good friends are something that is hard to come by in this world and so Isaac and I vowed to still meet up on occasion. In the meantime, I managed to find myself a job, gained new friends, and my life continued.
I met up with Isaac one day at his new place. He had moved to a pretty obscure rural location out in the sticks. His home was by an old hiking trail that wasn’t even on most modern maps of the area. Parts of it were rough and even overgrown. His cabin stood solemn in a world of isolation.
I walked in to see hordes of books on theology lining the walls with shelves beginning to buckle under the weight. He had commentaries on the Dead Sea Scrolls, The Book of The Damned by Charles Fort, Words of The Buddha, The Book of Mormon, as well as various texts of Mantras and meditations. His long list of books included even some UFO and Flying Saucer literature.
It was good to see him again but our conversation didn’t last long. He seemed to be in something of a hurry and his speech was noticeably faster than usual. He paced around the room as he told me of the things he had been reading, giving me short summaries of his most recent reads. If I tried to change the subject to something else, he brought it right back to the topic of religion. He had the uncanny ability to steer any conversation to his current form of obsession. I’d seen him get this way before, it usually only lasted a week or two before he’d mellow out again.
He told me that he planned to get a job as a lecturer soon. It sounded like something he might be good at. Though he did have problems sticking to a schedule. I told him about my new job, my recent vacation, and some adventures I’d been on with my friends since college. While he respectfully tried to be interested, I could tell his racing thoughts were elsewhere. It wasn’t long before he was right back to rattling off all the information he’d absorbed.
He apologized and told me that he had to get back to his studies before cutting the conversation short. I told him that we could meet up again in about a month or so if he wanted and he agreed. As I made my exit, I glanced over to see a book titled “Flying Saucers: Serious Business” and tried not to smile. It seemed that in his spiritual quest, the net just grew wider and wider.
Nothing could’ve prepared me for what I’d discover on my next visit.
I walked through the door to see all of his bookshelves were gone. After welcoming me in, Isaac sat down quietly at his desk. The room was entirely bare, no clutter, and no paper. Everything was gone. There was nothing but his bed, his desk, and a lone ceiling fan spinning slowly overhead.
“Isaac?,” I said with hesitation, “What happened?”
“I got rid of everything. I didn’t need it anymore.”
Isaac wore a peaceful expression on his face and was unaffected by concern or alarm.
“Why?,” I asked in disbelief.
“Because I have the answer now. I’m no longer an agnostic.”
Isaac was strangely reserved and closed off. He had cooled down considerably from the almost manic demeanor he had upon my previous visit. When I asked what answers he was talking about, he said he couldn’t tell me. It wasn’t like Isaac to be so tight-lipped about his studies. I’d never seen him behave like this. It was like night and day. He dodged all my questions and told me not to worry about it. Isaac said he no longer had a need for material possessions.
“I met a new friend,” he said.
I was very surprised to hear this. Isaac had always been a bit of a loner. In all the time I’d known him, he had no friends other than me.
“Did this friend of yours give you these answers?”
“I can’t tell you anything about them yet.”
“Them? Is it more than one new friend?”
“No, it’s just one,” Isaac said, suddenly seeming nervous.
He quickly changed the subject and didn’t return to this topic for the rest of my visit. I couldn’t get any more information out of him no matter how hard I tried.
Being the eccentric that he was, Isaac had never had a cellphone. He always said the government used it to track people. While that is true, not having one is a pretty extreme reaction. He always just told me at the end of our chats when to show up for next time. Our get-togethers were usually every month or two.
This time, however, Isaac told me he wanted to see me just a week later. I found this strange but given his recent behavior, I was certainly willing to check up on him.
After leaving Isaac’s place, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I wondered if he had finally lost his mind. Call it jealousy, but I was a tad suspicious of his new friend and what influence they might have on him. That week was the slowest week of my life. I couldn’t help but ruminate on my friend and what he might be going through.
Finally, I was able to see him again. He opened the door with a rather serious expression. The first words he said to me were: “They said I could tell you now.”
He invited me in and told me his story.
He was apparently out on the hiking trail one morning after a particularly deep theology study night. Near a specific rocky overhang, he kneeled on the ground and began to call out or pray to the divine to provide him with answers for his many questions. According to Isaac, he was then contacted by something.
“I don’t know what I was praying to. Just the universe or anything that would listen,” said Isaac.
This wasn’t the first time Isaac had tried to interact with the divine by praying, but something different happened this time. The wind picked up around him and he felt a strange almost apocalyptic feeling. Before him, a glowing humanoid being appeared. It was in the vague shape of a human outline but it shined with an incredibly brilliant light that somehow did not hurt his eyes to look at.
“It was an angel. I know it was,” Isaac said, “They had no name and no gender. They weren’t ‘he’ or ‘she’ but ‘they.’ They spoke to me telepathically with imagery in my mind.”
Isaac said that this being taught him things. They put images in his mind's eye. He saw people around a stream with a village being set up, then a river and cities being built. He saw how civilizations had formed and grown. Then he saw the human body broken down on a cellular level and the patterns or pathways by which the neurons fire in the human brain.
This being seemed to demonstrate that it deeply understood humanity, how it came to be, and what it is now. He was instructed not to tell anyone what he experienced yet. After their telepathic conversation, the being vanished completely.
Hearing all this, I was utterly dumbfounded.
“Are you sure about this, Isaac?” I asked him.
“Absolutely,” he replied with sincerity in his voice.
Isaac informed me that the being had talked with him again recently, and told him that he could tell me what happened. Isaac didn’t seem to care whether I believed him or not.
It wasn't like Isaac to lie and the changes in his life seemed undeniable. I felt something had really happened to him but I wasn't sure what.
Isaac was intelligent, but could be a bit naïve.
I was really worried for him and even considered calling a psychiatrist or getting him to seek some kind of psychological help. I voiced these concerns to him but it didn’t seem to do any good. He wouldn’t hear any of it. He told me once again that he wanted me to return for a visit sooner rather than later. He picked a date only a few days away for us to talk again.
In the interim, I thought hard about Isaac and his situation. It was disturbing to think what my friend who I cared about could be experiencing. I spent a lot of time looking for help and trying to figure out what to do. I was frightened for him and felt he might be in danger. I’d long suspected Isaac had some sort of mental issues because of his fixations and odd behaviors but I had never expected that it might manifest as something like this. He didn't seem to be a threat to himself or others, so I wasn't sure what could be done.
I also thought that perhaps this friend of his was a real person who had somehow fooled him into thinking they were some kind of angelic being. Still, in the back of my mind, I wondered if he could be right and if he actually did encounter something truly unexplainable.
On the day of our meeting, I drove up to Isaac’s property. Before I could knock on his door I noticed a piece of lined notebook paper taped to it.
The note read the following: “We’ll have to postpone your visit. I’ve gone to meet up with my friend at the trail. Goodbye for now. - Isaac.”
In a panic, I made my way out to the mountainous hiking trail. I had to get to Isaac before he did something stupid. As I journeyed down the wooded path I began to sense a strange energy in the environment, a feeling of electricity almost.
I came upon a bend in the trail, just beyond was the rock overhang where Isaac said he met the glowing being. As I approached I could smell the peculiar scent of ozone carried by the fresh mountain air as if just after a lightning storm.
Suddenly I noticed something moving in the sky towards the area I was walking. Looking upwards I witnessed a bizarre glowing light flying overhead. I had no clue what it was. I stared mystified for a moment before returning to the task at hand. I trekked onward around the trail bend to see Isaac standing there beneath the rock overhang.
In front of him, I saw a being made entirely of light in the form of a human silhouette. I was in utter shock. The being emitted no sound but appeared to be somehow conversing with Isaac who stood motionless. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
I pulled out my cellphone but as I lifted it to record this bizarre scene, the screen inexplicably blanked out. Smoke began to emit from my phone. Suddenly it became burning hot to the touch. It was like putting your hand on an active stove. With a yelp of pain, I dropped it and watched as the phone went cascading down the mountainside.
When I looked back up I then saw the object again in the sky. It got closer and brighter until I could see it in full view. It was a shining silver Flying Saucer.
A strange sense of paralysis took over me and I somehow lost the ability to move.
The craft slowly descended in a falling leaf pattern as it made its way to the earth. Landing gear extended from the craft and pierced the ground as it came to a final rest. A large metal door on the ship swung open as a silver ramp lowered down. From inside the ship, I could see nothing but a glow of white. I was amazed and terrified but frozen completely motionless. I stood in silent anticipation with my heart racing.
I stared transfixed as the glowing figure guided Isaac up the metal ramp and into the open mouth of the ship. The strange smell of sulfur emanated from the saucer. Isaac dutifully walked behind them and stepped aboard the craft. I couldn’t help but feel as if I was watching some kind of suicide. Isaac had finally taken his leap of faith. The door slammed shut with a metallic sound. The Flying Saucer then retracted its landing gear and took off straight upwards into the sky before disappearing completely out of view.
With this, I was broken from the spell of my paralysis. I stood there for a moment and simply basked in the sheer terror and majesty of it all, before turning around and running all the way back to my car.
I haven’t spoken to my friend Isaac in months. I have no idea where he is, but that’s okay.
I have a new friend now who I’ve been communicating with. This friend has taught me so much and at long last they are going to meet with me. They said I was allowed to tell you this story now because so much more is in store for us. I have to go for a hike now. I shouldn’t keep them waiting.
Written by Never You Mind Who
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