He Is

Heaven on earth. 
Freedom from guilt and shame. 
But first, all of the guilt and all of the shame.

Pain must be felt, and felt deeply.  Visceral, tangible, palpable to the bone, and sometimes even audible. 
Pain hurts. 

Fear is felt. Terror, sheer terror and agony. 
Not just as one might be frightened hearing a story but the very real terror of a life in peril. A real threat  of loss of life, of loss of self. 


All of this journey, all of this pain at great cost with no reward. 
No heaven for him, not really. Just a view of the victory.  There are
still his own pains and processes and peril. And those made greater by the exhaustion that comes from already fighting the battle. Battles that may or not be won as they are not his own. 

Parenting children, wooing lovers, paying penance, punishing criminals, all in a days work. 
Carrying soldiers who cannot carry on. Toting them out of battle, off the battle field to safety - only to return to the line of fire again and again until the battle is won.  And battle after battle waged, until the war is won.  
And that is just what he did for me. I’m not the only one. 
He saved my life. The life of my family and of each member of it. And of the families to come. Safe from the ghosts of the past and from the monsters that still prey. And the victims still willing to be preyed upon. 

All of hell on earth beaten back, chased away, defeated. For heaven. For heaven sake.  All by a single warrior. And a warrior; he is.