Friday, 8 January 2021

(Fiction) "Forgive Up To Seventy Times Seven!" by Regan Kim



Leo looked in the broken hand mirror that was dumped on the ground. His looks had become terrible in just half a day. It broke his heart.

Not far away was a cafe. A couple sat at a table, chatting. Each held a mug in their hand. The lovers looked happy, but Leo felt so miserable. This morning, he had been absurdly mistaken for a thief.

The incident happened while he was idling around town and came across an unidentified bag next to a rubbish bin. Curiosity aroused, so Leo immediately got into searching through the bag.

The bag owner, who was talking to someone a few steps away, soon realized what was going on. He jumped and kicked Leo mercilessly. Leo screeched and ran away frantically.

After wandering around aimlessly, Leo found himself on the beach. The roaring waves seemed to blame him. His curiosity had long been a source of trouble. He was losing his will to live. Leo took a step closer to the sea. The water he felt on his feet was cold. The time to make a final decision was just around the corner.

At that moment, Leo heard a church bell ring. The sound awakened his fading spirit. His steps unwittingly led him to the church on the hill. The main door of the church was closed. Leo opened a side door with a slight push.

It was dark inside, with only a small glimmer of light coming from the office upstairs. When Leo went up to investigate, the person sitting at the desk was about to switch off the light. Their eyes met as Leo approached, and the man shouted, "Oh, Leo!"

Leo couldn't stand it anymore. He barked like crazy, wagging his tail vigorously. Yes! Leo was a puppy, a one-year-old Schnauzer with a bushy beard. The person in the office was Leo's owner, a minister of the church.

The pastor hugged Leo's neck. "It's all right," he said. He already knew what had happened to Leo. When he went to town looking for Leo, he heard the bag owner's whole story and apologised.

He fed Leo first, then put Leo on his lap and began to pray. Leo heard the pastor's prayer. "Lord Jesus! Leo got into trouble again. But, let me forgive him up to seventy times seven, not seven times." Leo thought to himself, 'Hmm, it's weird. My pastor forgives me in the name of Jesus.' The name of Jesus gave Leo profound relief.

Leo fell asleep. In his dream, he faced the same bag again. Unable to resist, he began to sniff the bag. At that moment, the bag owner popped up.

Leo quickly escaped and exclaimed, "Jesus! Please forgive me once more! I still have seventy times seven minus one left!"

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