an elitist understanding of…

yes
there is an afterlife
sure, of course
as many as those that are believed in
those that can be agreed upon
and those solitary fancies
endless, I’m sure
but only until they get decided upon to end

for everything there is an end
but for that which is eternal
which I assume will end eventually
but you didn’t hear me say that

meanwhile
there are mortal narratives
even supernatural ones who have their time
and just as much as many may re-incarnate into states of perfection:
evolving from a slug into a king
or from an emperor to a blade of grass
many just get stuck on spin cycle
fit for any part needed at the time
extras in someones epic drama
walk-on roles
happy to exist
happy to fade back into the ethers that issued them for our stories to have audiences and fodder for points of illustration

perhaps the fact that some really die
-no afterlife
-no lesson learnings for Next time
makes them a bit more precious for the ears and eyes of those who keep the memories alive and tell the tales
but for those who really let themselves die
it doesn’t matter what is or cannot be remembered of their experiences
just that it happened when it did
changes made
or trials failed
not important
no authorship anyway…
( but for those crazy prophets… are there still slots open for them? )