"Jody Lynn Nye - The Grand Tour" - читать интересную книгу автора (Nye Jody Lynn)

defined cheek and temple bones and, half concealed in a thick white beard, a quick smile that made
Chuck think the old man knew far more than he did about everything. He was dressed in a tunic woven
out of rough, gray wool thread, a pair of dark-colored, baggy trousers and leather sandals. тАЬI thought
for a moment you werenтАЩt going to make it.тАЭ
тАЬI didnтАЩt have a choice,тАЭ Chuck said, resentfully. тАЬThey were taking away my signs. I was afraid IтАЩd
be lost.тАЭ
тАЬYou did have a choice,тАЭ the old man said. тАЬYou always have a choice. IтАЩm glad at least your sense
of self-preservation is intact, if not your curiosity.тАЭ
тАЬWho are you? What am I doing here? How do you know who I am?тАЭ
тАЬAh, thereтАЩs the curiosity,тАЭ the small man said with satisfaction, poking Chuck in the chest with a
forefinger. тАЬYour wits are working after all. IтАЩm Keir, your spirit guide. You wanted to expand your
mind, you said. You wanted to get it together, you said. Learn who you really are, you said. Find the
real you, you said. Astral travel as the path to enlightenment. Eh?тАЭ
Spirit . . . ? тАЬAh, yes,тАЭ Chuck said, excitedly. Something was coming back to him now. тАЬYou mean
it worked? IтАЩm here! ThatтАЩs great! But how did I get here? ThatтАЩs not a real plane out there.тАЭ
тАЬOf course not. It was merely a construct to help transport you here. Any means that works is good
enough. Like chopsticks. It could be anything that would help you to understand that you have been
conveyed from one place, the Waking World,тАЭ Keir picked up something invisible with both hands,
тАЬto another, which is here, the Dreamland.тАЭ He set down his invisible burden, and looked up at Chuck
for understanding. Not finding it in the puzzled young manтАЩs eyes, he waved a dismissive hand. тАЬItтАЩs
all symbolism, not real stuff. As youтАЩll see. Come with me.тАЭ
тАЬHave I met you before?тАЭ Chuck asked, as they walked. тАЬYou donтАЩt look familiar.тАЭ
тАЬEverything is going to look different here,тАЭ Keir said. тАЬEven you. Oh, yes, weтАЩve met. YouтАЩve
known me before. But IтАЩm not going to remind you of how. It isnтАЩt necessary. The important thing is
the here and the now. DonтАЩt overanticipate. Try always to be in the here and now. You might find it to
be the most vital thing you do, to keep safe. Please come along.тАЭ
They stepped out into the carpeted corridor, joining the throng of travelers. As soon as they were
out of the gate area, counter, doorway and all were promptly taken apart, folded into a box, and hauled
away by the ubiquitous workmen. They started to unfold a different scene that when it sprang up
looked every bit as real as the gate had. Chuck kept looking back over his shoulder, watching in
fascination as solid walls compressed down into a space much smaller than they should have fit, and
three-dimensional objects came out of flat portfolios that couldnтАЩt have concealed a newspaper. The
workers picked up their boxes and hauled them away as if they weighed no more than a carton of
cornflakes. It was the most remarkable thing heтАЩd ever seen. He wanted to watch some more, but Keir
kept tugging him along. Chuck was aware of the guideтАЩs voice asking him questions, but he was too
interested in his surroundings to pay attention. More marvels sprang up at each new turning. Was that
woman really walking a fur coat on a leash? And that party of huge fish in Hawaiian shirts! What were
they doing? There was so much to absorb.
Something Keir said finally drilled through to his conscious mind. Astral projection! Was he really
astrally projecting, or projecting astrally, or whatever you called it? He had tried so often, for so long,
to make it happen. He wanted to be raised to a higher plane, where meditation would bring him true
peace of mind. His life had hit a dead end. If he couldnтАЩt find a way to untie the knot of misery that
choked him even now, he might as well be dead. Chuck could recall being on the edge of suicide
again. Again? He racked his memory for details. He couldnтАЩt remember anything about his past
clearly, but somehow he was sure finding himself was a matter of life or death. His own.
He was so desperately unhappy that it made him feel hollow. That was why he had gone to so much
effort to learn to meditate and look inside himself, in hopes of finding peace. He couldnтАЩt mention his
attempts to anyone he knew, because theyтАЩd think he was absolutely nuts. If he failed again, he didnтАЩt
want anyone else to know. It lookedтАФhe hardly dared think itтАФas if heтАЩd gotten this right.
Practice, the guidebooks said. And he had. He remembered reading up on several techniques.