The city was alive with movement as people trickled in and out of the buildings with a relaxed expression in their manner. The streets were like a well-oiled machine as the cars stopped, then continued in the middle of a brisk windstorm. The sun, orange and vibrant, was setting beyond the horizon to give its light to another part of our beloved earth.

I stood in front of the mirror and looked at myself for the last time before heading out. A 3-piece suit, some expensive cologne, hair combed properly, and a proper shave later, I was ready to meet her – the woman every man wanted to take home on Friday night. 

We had known about each other for a year, we even worked in the same building, albeit for different companies. We occasionally saw each other at the bar but I rarely went. I kept telling myself that I needed to be an upstanding influence for my employees when in reality, I just didn’t want to go. There was nothing there I really wanted. 

But tonight, she was who I wanted. Confident, beautiful, her walk could attract attention from 1,000 miles. Granted, I didn’t have much experience in the dating field, but that wasn’t going to stop me from approaching her and giving it everything I had, young personality and all.

I looked at my watch. It was 5:00, half an hour before she usually arrived. I figured I’d go there early and make my usual… Brazen entrance for the boys, before she got there.

—

I was talking to this strapping young man at the bar. He was younger than me by a year or two, but he had the kind of charisma I couldn’t resist, even though I never show it. He was obviously trying to get me drunk by putting his money on the table, but I was only in the mood for a meloti… He understood. The conversation carried on like normal, the wine swirling in my glass and our eyes fixed on each other’s.

I was early because, unbeknownst to everyone else, I took a special interest in my date tonight. I heard the stories of him being full of surprises, and doing different things for different kinds of people. I wondered what he was going to do for me… So, I wanted to make sure I was punctual, even if he was early tonight.

Suddenly, the door to the bar flung open and a man walked in with ferocious tenacity. I sensed a bold energy coming from this new person, and so did everyone else. We turned our heads to face him. He liked that. His face began beaming, the corners of his lips moved towards his eyes, and he threw back his shoulders. 

“HOW ARE MY PEOPLE DOING… Tonight?” His eyes fixed on me, and I sensed his confidence level drop a notch or two. Was this one of the surprises? A special entrance for the regulars? He couldn’t be serious. The bartender coughed and lowered his head, effectively telling him that his welcome was welcomed, but that there was a lady present. There was also a hint of, “play along with what I’m about to say” in his voice as he addressed him.

“Can I help you, sir?” He asked in a gruff voice.

“You can’t… But she can!” He spoke with an odd tone, almost as if he was trying to be confident when he realized he had made a humorous mistake. I’m a confident woman, so it didn’t phase me at all. I simply responded with,

“I won’t be able to help you with anything! You’ve already done enough to embarrass yourself without trying to approach me.”

Suddenly, I didn’t want to go on a date with him, even though we set up the date a few weeks ago. This side of him was… A bit too much for me. It definitely wasn’t my style.

“Well, that’s fine! My other date is waiting in the car, care to join us anyway?” He said with a smirk on his lips.

His legs were shaking. He couldn’t have been older than 24, 25, and he was really trying to bounce back from his… Obviously rash behavior. His comeback game needed some work as well. But there was something about him that was… Endearing. Charming, almost, although I wouldn’t go that far. None of my previous men ever dared to act like this in front of me, even on accident. They were never 100% completely genuine, and I always found that to be a bit of a turnoff. But, he definitely had some work to do – and I wasn’t about to waste my time teaching him the ropes. So, I told him the truth.

“I wanna see what you look like with your big boy pants on. Come back to me after you change.” I gave him a wink and a smile. I turned back around to face my man, and he went in for the kiss. I enjoyed every, single, second of it!”

—

I walked out of the bar and made a beeline to my apartment. Once I was there I burst into a kind of laughter I hadn’t felt in years, the kind of laugh that makes your belly ache and your sides completely sore. 

I couldn’t believe she was half an hour early! I was going to go in, say howdy-do to the boys, make some conversation… She’d come in, I’d treat her like a lady, and that would be that. But nooo! She had to already be there, talking to another man, no less! I couldn’t believe it. It was the funniest thing I had ever experienced.

“And why would she say that? She doesn’t actually like me, does she? There’s no way…”

I put my head in my hands, embarrassment flowing through me and reminding me of what I just did. However, I slowly came to a realization, and my feeling of embarrassment changed to a feeling of invigoration.

“But… Of course. She noticed I was nervous,  but she obviously liked something about me since she invited me to come back. So what’ll I do… Maybe I’ll improve. I’ll read books. I’ll search the internet for advice. I’ll go on mock dates. I’ll… I’ll start right now, in fact!”

I got out my phone and typed in, “what is it that women want?” My eyes hungrily devoured the information I saw before me as I readjusted my perception and adapted to the changes I felt I needed to make.

2 hours later, I was ready.

“Okay… Confidence, assertiveness, security, and protectiveness. These are the things I’ll focus on tonight. I’ll just text Amanda and ask her to go on a mock date with me… We’ve been good friends for a while, so I’m sure she won’t mind…”

*4 hours later*

“You’re kidding me, right?”

“Nope. Get out of my house! You’re asking too many questions!”

“A good man would let his woman stay the night. You aren’t from around here, are you? I guess not, or else you’d know the proper way to treat a lady.”

“Doesn’t matter where I’m from. Outta my house!”

I was about to sit at his table for dinner, but instead I held my head high in the air as I walked out of his front door. A surge of pride flew through me as I showed him the entirety of his IQ and heard him yelling something back at me. Thankfully, it wasn’t a long walk back to my car. I figured I’d just go home and enjoy the weekend with myself… I had no problem with that.

But, I felt something rise within me as I drove down the empty streets. Maybe it was the alcohol, and maybe it was because he didn’t properly please me. I wanted to be with someone who was going to care for me and treat me with respect. Everyone else was asleep by now since they didn’t go to bars and get drunk on the weekends… But, I knew one man who was awake!

I saw him in our building from time to time, charming and charismatic as he gave his employees their instructions for the day. I wondered what he was like, I wondered why it took us so long to officially meet each other… Then he burst into the bar! He was too brazen, certainly, but I was in the mood for a wild night. I was sure he wouldn’t mind if I stopped by…

—

Holy cow, I feel great! The mock date was awesome. I learned a lot from people who know what they’re doing. I think I can go to sleep content. Maybe I’ll do it again tomorrow after work. You know what? I’m going to make it my goal. I want her by the end of the month! I’m going to keep improving myself, keep gaining experience, and I want her to be mine by the end of the month. Besides, she’s at least somewhat interested, so I have a decent shot here…

My thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. I scrunched my forehead in confusion.

“Hello? Is it Randel?” He would often come over and we would play video games together, especially on the weekends, but he usually knocked way earlier than this.

“No…” came a sweet, seductive voice.

‘Wait, I know who this is!’ I thought to myself. ‘Why is she here? Why now? Why am I suddenly feeling anxious all over again? Dang it! Okay… Compose yourself. Act natural. Confidence above everything else. Here I go.’

I stood up, straightened my shoulders, and opened the door. We stood there for what seemed like forever, looking at each other. She smiled, bit her lip, and looked me up and down. 

“Hmm, you look handsome in your PJs,” she said in a soft, pleasurable tone. She let herself in, turned on the light, and sat down at the kitchen table. She crossed her legs and flipped her hair back in a feisty manner – she was obviously into me. Somehow I felt confident and anxious at the same time, however, I didn’t really know what to say. I was shocked! And she could see it.

“I’m hungry! Why don’t you make me something to eat?”

‘Wait, I just got done reading about this. Apparently, women tell their men what to do as a test to see if they’re confident or not. I better respond properly – not in a rude way, but in a confident way.’

“Mi casa Su casa!” I said with a confident tone of voice as I motioned my hand towards the contraption.

—

After he said that, I began feeling even more girly than before, and I laughed like I hadn’t laughed in a long time. Usually, my men were already well-established players in the field, but he was still learning and doing fairly well. I felt a certain kind of respect for that. I don’t know why, but I got up from my chair, sighed a little, and walked towards him. I put my hands on his shoulders and slowly rocked back and forth, a gigantic smile on my face.

“So, what happened with the other guy?” Ew. I didn’t want to think about that. Why did he mention him? Maybe he was still a little nervous and, most likely, insecure.

I pushed away from him in a half playful, half disgusted manner. I turned around, looking behind me while saying, “Don’t worry about him. Turns out he wasn’t the man he put himself out to be.” I plopped myself down on his couch, and I was surprised at how comfortable it was. He walked up behind me and started giving me a shoulder massage. I didn’t even have to say anything! Wow. He was learning… And he was learning fast.

“But you, on the other hand… There’s something I like about you. The way you burst into the bar was a bit much… But, you have the courage to face your fears. And you just started giving me a massage without me saying a word. I’m kind of into you…”

He chuckled a little bit, and I felt myself tingle from head to toe. Okay… Maybe I did feel like teaching him a thing or two after all.

I quickly brushed his hands off me in a playful manner and got up and giggled all the way to the fridge. I really was hungry – we were supposed to eat at his place but we never got around to it. I found some steak and veggies in the freezer! He was going to love it.

As I pulled the food out I could see he was struggling, emotions were swirling as he was trying to figure out what he wanted to say to me. He was going through the possible scenarios in his head and discarding the ones he thought I wouldn’t appreciate. To be honest, I didn’t really care at that point. I just wanted him to say something. Anything. I wanted to respond to him. I found a pan and got the meat out of its package, placing it inside and turning the heat on.

“So… This is our first… Date, right? Honestly, I didn’t know you went on dates.”

Cute! A little brash, but cute. “What do you think I do when I walk out of the bar with a guy every Friday night? Sit on his couch and play video games with him? I go on dates all the time, silly!” 

“I thought you only did… Other things with the guys you go on dates with.”

I momentarily stopped what I was doing, rolled my eyes, and sighed. “Does everything have to be about that with you guys? I seriously think you have an obsession with it sometimes.”

“Hmm… Don’t even give me that” he said in a low, seductive tone. “You walk out of that bar with a different man almost every night…” I was impressed with how playful he was, considering his nervous behavior not 5 minutes before…

— 

‘Oh crap. Did I go too far? Maybe I shouldn’t have said it like that. Maybe I shouldn’t have progressed that quickly. Crap. How is she going to respond?’

—

I shot him a playful glance as the steak began frying in the pan. He raised his eyebrows… He didn’t know if he went too far or not. Again, how cute! He thought he could go too far with someone like me…

“Oh yeah? Maybe I won’t give you any steak…” Of course I was going to give him some steak. I just felt like saying it.

“Well… That’s okay, I already ate” he said with a soft and humorous tone. 

—

‘Okay, okay, I’ve got this. I can do this. If I didn’t go too far with that little comment, then I can work with this. In fact, I’m already proud of how far I’ve come. I won’t beat myself up if I mess up.’

“Good! Then you won’t mind if I have this steak allllll to myself…” 

She spoke, and then I didn’t know what to do. It was almost as if she was saying, “make me share with you.” Obviously, I wasn’t going to make her share with me, but I had an idea.

I walked to the utensil drawer and grabbed a fork and knife. The steak was still very rare, so I knew what I had to do. I slowly walked up behind her and put my hands on her stomach. She sighed, and she seemed to like it! But since one hand was on the handle and one hand was on the spatula, I quickly cut the steak into two pieces before she caught on! When she noticed what I did she squealed in delight and shouted “hey!” louder than she should’ve at 11 at night!

—

No way! He did exactly the right thing to do! Oh, my, god. It was so funny that I couldn’t help but giggle like a little girl! And that’s when he started tickling me! Laughter filled the room and probably woke up some of his neighbors. He started laughing too, and I could feel him loosening up a little bit. It was the perfect moment.

We kissed right then and there… And wow, was he a good kisser. He was a natural. I moaned a little as I moved into his lips. I could feel his anxiety coming back, so I pulled away so we wouldn’t go too quickly and make him too nervous.

He could’ve asked me to swim in the river with him and I would have done it. How did he do it? How did he become so good so quickly? I was beginning to think this was his plan all along, and that he was secretly a mastermind, even though I knew that was silly. But he was just so good…

He must have seen the look in my eyes because he smiled a devilish smile. I turned back to the pan, praying he would turn off the flame and hold me again. I wondered what he would do.

—

‘Wow, that felt great. I did the right thing. But she turned around again? Why? Didn’t she want to laugh and play not 10 seconds ago? Hmm… Maybe I should do something again. But what? Wait, what if I just pulled her away from the stove or something? But, isn’t she hungry? Hmm… I think I’ll just go for it. We can always continue cooking later if she wants to.’

—

I felt 2 strong arms pull me away from the stove in a gentle but firm manner. “Hey,” I said, and he started nibbling on my neck. Oh my gosh, he did something even better than before! I was really glad I went to his apartment that night, and I showed my appreciation by laughing once again, turning around, and kissing him as passionately as I could. He really liked that, and when we parted, we knew that tonight wasn’t the only night we’d be spending together!

The man-made structure melted before I could make up my mind. “War is peace, freedom is slavery, and thinking is stupid,” said my thoughts as they tormented me once more. 

“What hoots,” I whispered to myself, “wise in their minds and dumb with their hands. No. They’re “differently-abled.” Sometimes I believe the projects they make will melt the eyes of myself and others when we glance upon them as if they were created by Medusa’s child. They do not know of their incompetence when in reality, they have everything they ever needed all along.”

Our bed was pressed down with the weight of both of our bodies, and the room was dark, spacious, and thoughtful. “Almost midnight,” I thought to myself as the nightly landscape caught my attention once again. We love the view, the stained-glass windows, the red and gold curtains gently moving side to side in the wind… The house is perfect in our eyes.

I turned my head, and my eyes rested upon her. My mind, sometimes calm and peaceful, flooded me with a storm of emotions as her lips drew upwards. “Her face, my God, her face. She smiles when she sleeps. My one and only makes the night feel bright as day. Why fate brought her to me is beyond me. She is my dear, my everything, my love. They say there are more fish in the sea, but they didn’t tell me that she’s the only fish I want to see!” I laughed at my own, spontaneous joke, wondering if I should take the comedian class she signed us up for.

The future… “Ahh yes, the future, such is what I contemplate in a room lit with only the lustrous light of the moon.” My mind yelled at me with a silent voice, telling me to get a job for my family, even though we are… Financially independent. That’s putting it lightly, considering both of us are millionaires. Many hard days together, a lot of blood, sweat, and tears are behind us now as we relish in the rewards of our efforts. I chose to be an influencer, and she chose to be a banker. You could say we complete each other, she loves my personality and I love the extra interest. Haha. What are the odds I would start as a comedian, struggle to barely get by, and find myself making seven digits a year as an influencer? Slim to none. And besides, this job is a large reason why we’re so satisfied together – we take vacations whenever we want, we go to the doctor whenever we want, and we love each other whenever we want – it’s a hard place to get to, but we’re glad that we got to it. 

My mind. My worst enemy. My best friend. It is the reason I stay awake, entertaining the hurricane of thoughts and images that leaves no structure in its wake. “Why must I be so paradoxical, when a peaceful mind is all I need?” I asked myself. “I must calm myself, for her, so we may wake tomorrow and love each other. I must tame the beast and put him to sleep, even if only for a day. An hour. A minute. I must be everything I can be, instead of being everything I shouldn’t be.”

My plea was not heard as the negative thoughts quickly took hold of my being yet once more. They showed me my worst fears as images that endlessly swirled around in my mind, tormenting me, preventing my so-desired escape into the world of my dreams. Abandonment. Loneliness. Shame. The things I never had to fear were the things I feared the most. “I’m so glad I have self-control,” I sarcastically muttered to myself. “Oh no, I don’t know what I’m afraid of! Please, show me again! Show me until I understand!” I thought in a mocking tone. I caught myself and calmed down.

“Why do I do this to myself,” I asked directly, looking for a simple answer. “Because, deep down, you desire it,” came the answer. Simple, yes, but not what I wanted to hear! At least I knew the issue – I could fix it if I had the willpower. “The willpower which doesn’t exist in you,” the voice whispered in the dark.

“Positivity,” I said to myself, “positivity. Why do I love her? Because her heart glows like a candle in the darkness of my mind. Because her words are as soft as silk and her touch as gentle as an autumn breeze. Because she is a goddess from heaven who chose to stay on earth and bless me for all eternity. And besides, do I need a reason to love her? Must I tell myself why? I simply wish to love her, to see her in my bed for as long as I live… Perhaps for no reason other than that, I do.”

I looked at her, and my dream of being a comedian transformed into the protector archetype, almost immediately. “I will do anything to make sure she is safe, to make sure I hear the ruffling of her bathrobe in the morning, her light footsteps in the hallway. I want to share the small moments for the rest of my life. I’ll treasure them as precious memories never to be forgotten, to always be cherished and remembered, to be hers and mine alike. What she does that is effortless for her means more to me than she will ever know. Her little acts of love-“

I suddenly remembered that I had to fix our refrigerator unless I wanted our food to slowly spoil overnight. I told myself I would do it hours ago, but I let myself be distracted by holding her in my arms until she fell asleep. Determination could be seen in my forehead, and the bed made a slight creek as I arose to quench the thirst of curiosity. It was time to do some research!

“How… To… Fix… Refrigerator… Power cord.” My office is spacious with many books lining the walls. I love reading in my spare time, and I’ll often read in there when I’m not working or researching. The search engine gave me a plethora of results, so many that I just clicked the first one I saw.

“Has your refrigerator stopped working? Let’s find the solution!

Most problems with your fridge require a professional’s attention. These things are complicated, and you don’t want to accidentally mess anything up by putting the wrong thing in the wrong place. 

But, maybe you can’t wait until tomorrow. Maybe it’s the weekend, and your food is going to spoil before they can arrive! We get it. Luckily for you, if the cord is your only problem, you can fix it yourself in a couple of minutes with the right tools and a bit of elbow grease.

Here’s how!”

I scrunched my forehead in concentration as I continued reading. According to the experts, I had to take out the old cord and replace it with a new one. The only problem was, our old cord blew sooner than we expected, and the new one wouldn’t arrive ’til Friday. It had to be fixed tonight unless I wanted to put everything in the coolers, run down to the 24/7 mini-mart, and buy enough ice to last us a few days. I was confident in my ability to fix the cord, but only if this post was going to be helpful… And, it was not – it was all fluff and no substance. “You missed your opportunity to attract new viewers,” my entrepreneur mind observed as disappointment began to rise within me.

I clicked away from the article and found a different one. 

“To fix your power cord, unplug it from the outlet and check to see where the cord has been damaged. 

-Check the copper wires to see if they’re frayed.

-Check the casing to see if any noticeable gaps could invite wear and tear to the “guts” of the cord.

-Check the outlet and the cord prongs to make sure they’re stable and intact.

-Take off the back casing and check where the wire is connected to the unit. If the part of the cord that’s damaged is inside your refrigerator, you may need to call a professional.

Once you’ve identified the problem, unscrew the holding screws on a new plug and remove the old one from your refrigerator by…”

My facial expression changed as masculine anger began to rise within me. The article was titled, “how to fix your refrigerator power cord,” not “how to replace your refrigerator power cord!” I knew what was happening – they wanted to draw people in with their title and take the easy way out by saying, “Hey, you should just get a new cord!” Monetarily speaking, this was the smallest deal in the world to me, but it was the principle of the thing that made me consumed with righteous anger. 

I’ve always believed that authenticity is very important for those of us who work online, so I will not accept nor tolerate those who are simply trying to make some quick money from people who have real problems. Once again, I clicked away from the article, and this time I added the website to my blacklist.

“Third time’s the charm,” I whispered to myself. This one looked promising – thousands of happy reviews, a layout that was very smooth and expensive, and it even had a little sidebar with interesting facts on the right side of the screen! 

“Did you know that…

The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper?

What is called a “French kiss” in the English-speaking world is known as an “English kiss” in France?

Ginger stimulates the feelings of excitement associated with sex?”

My belly lifted with laughter and my eyebrows lifted towards the sky when I read the third one. “I’ll have to tell her about that,” I said to myself, smiling as I did so. I felt relieved and relaxed, happy that I took the time to divert my attention away from my duties and learn the most random-but-interesting facts I’ve ever heard of.

I kept reading, and they weren’t going to tell me their solution until the very end. But wait, there was the answer, right at the very bottom! Yes! This article told me exactly what I needed to know! 

I knew exactly what to do!

My momentary excitement was soon consumed with humorous sarcasm. “I suppose the previous articles were a blessing – if they told me what I wanted to know, I wouldn’t have found this website and had a good laugh. Ironic. I gain time when I waste time. Now, let’s assume I’m in The Quiet House – one loud noise, and she’ll be a tad unhappy!”

I got up and made my way to the shop with a sense of duty, a mission to accomplish. “Hopefully I’ll remember where I put my tools. When I do, I’m rich, and when I don’t, I’m embarrassed. My mind takes every opportunity to swallow my positivity, chew it up, and spit out the remains. If I can’t find where I put them… Well, I’ll find where I put them. That’s for sure. I’ll find them if it’s the last thing I do.”

In my hustle and haste, I didn’t hear my goddess’s soft footsteps as she came walking up behind me on that cool summer night. Her hug was a warm blanket as she grabbed ahold of me from behind and gently rested her head on my left shoulder. I ceased my restlessness, and I slowly caressed her cheek with my right hand, allowing her to relax her head into my palm. We stayed like this for what felt like forever, and I believe both of us wanted it to last a lifetime.

“Why?” She asked in a soothing and curious voice. 

“I’m trying to find my pliers,” I said in a low, soft tone. She tightened her grip.

“Come to bed with me,” she said in a quivering voice. Her body began to shake. “I want us to be together in the morning.”

I grasped both of her hands and held them within mine. So delicate, so soft. She began to cry, and I quickly turned around to embrace her, tears flowing from her face and sobs coming from her throat. I put my left hand behind her head and pressed her into my chest while bringing her body closer to me with my right. I felt her relax as she continued to release her emotions, a kind of sadness that showed me yearned for connection, a kind of sadness I often felt before we met 3 years ago.

“I love you.”

She didn’t respond, but she didn’t have to. Her crying soon ceased and she looked me in the eyes with a look I knew very well. I responded with a look of my own; ‘yes, my dear, I will always be here for you. Always.’ I took her hand and led her towards the house. I could always fix it tomorrow. 

We found ourselves in bed, passionately kissing each other goodnight. That’s when I remembered the thing I saw before. I had to ask…

“Love?”

“Yes?” 

“Do we, by any chance, have any ginger?” 

Her eyebrows furrowed together as she thought about it for a minute. “Yep! It’s ground-up… And, it’s in the top-left cabinet. Why do you ask?”

I winked at her and smiled. “Oh, it’s nothing. I’m thinking I’ll making us some smoothies tomorrow night…”

Something that’s come to my attention is the debate between those who believe in God and those who actively deny his existence. This argument may either be active or passive, and much more damage is done to both sides when it is passive.

I wish to address this because I see an answer that is liberating to both parties involved. I wish to enact a fictional scenario in an attempt to take it as far as need be so that the answer will make sense.

The Story

We have, on the one hand, a Christian man. He is above average intelligence and is able to argue his case with fervidity, passion, and authority. He believes that the bible holds wisdom for every man and that God is the answer to all things. He is bright, friendly, and courageous. The people love him instantly.

On the other hand we have the atheist, the one who says that this isn’t the case. He argues that most religions are propaganda which lead away from the truth, and that most religions are peculiarly looking forward to the impending doom that is coming soon (especially on the extremist side of religion). Not to mention the suffering that’s in the world today.

They sit and decide to actively argue in front of an audience. The Christian goes first by telling his personal story, and the audience is enamoured by his charm. They feel bright in their solar plexus when he speaks, and because of this everyone thinks “he must have found something, or else he wouldn’t have been able to escape from that hellish kind of life.”

When he’s finished the audience gives him a round of applause that can be heard far outside of the room. Very well done.

The atheist comes forward and explains his observations on the people who are self-proclaimed to be religious. He sees that most of them are wanderers who are unable to come to grips with the complexity of life. They are, as he puts it, “ensnared in the jaws of propaganda and mind control.”

He explains a theoretical life without religion and how many people have died in the name of God, and his point of view is very captivating to the audience. He finishes with a different kind of applause – an applause that shows respect instead of jubilee.

They know each-other’s story, and this helps them to empathize with each-other. The Christian argues that God does exist and points to certain passages in the bible for reference. The atheist counters by saying, “The bible cannot prove itself, friend. And besides this, it doesn’t change the fact that people have died in the name of religion.”

The Christian doesn’t seem phased by this and doesn’t try to retaliate in any way. He simply says, “I believe with all of my heart that, past the corruption, past everything, that God is real and that he exists.” The atheist says, “I hope you see past the corruption and continue living a happy life.” They shake hands and leave.

Summary

We can see that both sides of the argument are very, very real. What I mean by this is the Christian is able to spread a feeling of light in the solar plexus area, and that the atheist is smart enough to see past it and address the issue he wishes to address.

They are, at this point, two equally-abled runners springing down the track towards the finish line. They are both powerful individuals in their own rite.

I created this short and fictional debate to point out the fact that when the Christian says “God” he really means “me,” and when the atheist says “there is a problem with God’s religion,” he’s trying to lead people towards peace through the lies and deception of dogma. So what is the answer? The answer is that both parties must consciously choose to realize that they, themselves, are the power they seek.

Conclusion

The Christian believes in God, but he must realize that he is God, and the atheist must find his own power again after having navigated through the lies of the church. Then both may feel what they wish to feel, and know what they wish to know!