She sat alone in her room when the golden light came. Shaded daylight illuminated the room from two open windows and she didn’t notice the glowing golden light at first. Instead, she was contemplating a sizable bag of clothing on her bed. About four or five feet from the floor and in the center of the room an amorphous, ethereal haze of swirling golden light grew larger and brighter.
When the young woman finally did notice the phenomenon she caught her breath. What?!
“Do not be afraid,” she heard a voice in her head say. “I have some good news for you.” The glowing light grew larger and brighter and was beginning to take shape.
I must be cracking up, she thought. This can’t be happening.
The ethereal globe of light began to solidify, arms, legs, torso, head, and what looked like wings to her on its back, a very human looking body coalesced. The light faded and a dark haired, dark complected man stood before her. He was dressed in a simple white tunic with a cincture tied around his middle.
“Are you an angel?” she asked.
“If it pleases you to think of me as such,” the man said.
“You have wings.”
“Ahh, I see you could think so. They are but receptors that allow me to be here with you at this point in time.” He smiled a charming smile and nodded. “In a way, they are wings.” He showed her the palms of his empty hands, “I truly mean you no harm,” he said. “My name is Gay Bree Al and I belong to a race of people that live very far away from here.”
The young woman knew she should be terrified by this unnatural experience but somehow, strangely, she felt great inner calm and serenity. “Why have you come?” she asked.
The charming smile appeared on the man’s face once again. “To tell you that you are about to become a mother.”
She was engaged to be married, to be sure. However, unlike many others, she and her intended had never had sexual intercourse. “I certainly hope so,” she said. “I want a great family, with many sons and daughters!”
“It’s going to be sooner than later,” the man said. “The seed already has begun to sprout in your womb. Soon you will give birth to a very special person.”
“How is that possible? I’m a virgin,” she countered.
“In your womb are many seeds in waiting. Waiting to be consummated,” he explained. “Inside them is a plan, a code, if you will, for making a human being. But it’s only part of the plan. We’ve simply provided the missing parts for one of them.”
“And that will make me pregnant?”
The dark man’s smile was soothing. “Indeed,” he said.
Infectious smile or no, she thought as a frown took shape on her youthful face, this will be a big problem. “But I’m a virgin,” she reiterated.
“Yes.”
“They’ll stone me to death in the plaza!” she cried.
He smiled once more, “No, they won’t. We’ll have a little talk with your fiance and things will work out. I promise.”
As that sank in, she thought to ask, “Why are you doing this?”
“That’s the good question,” he said, scratching at his close cropped beard. “We’ve been watching your species from afar for quite some time now. From very early on your great, great ancestors—small creatures that lived in trees—showed the aptitude for self sacrifice and commitment to each other in spite of the overwhelming influence of your will to survive.
“We wish to fortify that attitude in your species as it’s the only way you can survive long enough to grow and leave your nest, which, at the moment, is this tiny little planet.
“Most species, when left alone, will destroy themselves fighting over material possessions or even abstract ideas. We intend to keep you from doing that.
“Your will to survive, your greatest strength, is also the source of your greatest downfall.
“So what does that have to do with me getting pregnant?” she asked.
“Selfishness? . . . Everything!” The dark man grew pensive. “We can’t just come down here and tell you all you must cooperate, work together, share together—love each other, if you wish to survive as a species and go on to join the greater community that exists beyond your knowledge. Simply knowing of our existence would wreck your entire, frankly primitive, society.
“So we’re giving you one of your own, a teacher, as it were, to lead you to the proper path. To help him, we’ve given him some abilities your species won’t develop until the distant future.”
She pondered that for a moment. He’s right about the chaos, she thought. All those self righteous religious folks who think they’re running things would be left twisting in the wind if they ever found out about this. “And you want me to be its mother? Why me?”
“His mother,” the dark man stressed. “He will be male, due to the strictures of your society. It was felt a female would not have as great a chance of success in this endeavor.”
“You didn’t answer my question,” she said, “why me?”
“We’ve studied your psychological profile and feel confident you can follow this through without losing your mind.” His smile was beaming now. “You are a very strong woman, even if you don’t know it yet.”
What’s a ‘psychological?’ For that matter, what’s a ‘planet?’ she thought. I am losing it. This has to be a really bad dream.
“No dream, young lady,” the dark man said. His image began to glow that golden glow and fade. “You are blessed among women and your legacy will save your species!” She heard the last like an echo as the strange apparition faded completely and vanished.
She sat alone in her room, dumbfounded, for a long time. Did that really just happen? Brilliant chisels of light had come in through the windows and begun their march across the floor. She looked at the bag of laundry on the table before her. With a little shrug and a wry smile she said to herself, “Somebody’s got to do it.” She got up, hefted the laundry and left.