chapter 17

Justin was getting used to the strange goings on in the house now.
He was no longer afraid when his grandmother came to visit. She was none too pleased about him putting in weight, but then again, it was none of her business. She was dead, after all! She could do absolutely nothing about it!
Even the dark presence in the house did not scare him so much.
He was getting used to getting by on little sleep. He would go to bed early enough, it was the getting to sleep that was the problem.
He often heard bumps and footsteps in the hallway or the living room.
He did not consider himself to be religious, but he prayed like he never had before. The Lord's Prayer was easy to remember. The lord is my shepherd was easy to remember if he sang it, especially 'and yea though I walk in the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil' that made him feel strong. He didn't know if it scared the bad spirits away, but it made him feel better.
Justin's style was changing again. He had discovered an Indian hippie shop. He loved the bright colours, and patterns. The clothes were definitely not suitable for going to work in, but if he was on a day off, there was nothing better than lounging around all day in a big baggy tunic with a pair of harem trousers. He liked the smell in the shop and the sound of the little bells. He would burn joss sticks whenever he had time to, he hung bells on his door so that he could hear if anyone (alive or dead) was coming in uninvited.
He liked the 'dirty' silver jewellery they sold there, the silk scarves, indeed everything!
He'd never really thought about India before, but now, he felt drawn to it.
One night, he had a dream where he was an Indian woman wearing a green and gold sari. He had a red coloured bhindi in the centre of his forehead, exactly where he had a mole now.
He could not remember much more about the dream when he woke up, but from his little book that he bought by the astrologer, that was where the third eye was supposed to be.
Why did he have a mole there then? Was it a scar from where his third eye had healed over, or had he lived another life as an Indian woman. Was that at the same time when Louise had been his husband? Had she been Indian too? Or was that another life altogether?
He was getting confused. This life was difficult enough to live, without complications from his previous lives hanging over him as well! How many lives had he lived? How often had he been on earth?
He had no idea, but he thought it best not to dwell too much on the past and live in the present.