Letters to friends (from Libby's afterlife/canon update)
[Note: each letter includes a copy of this photograph.]
Martha,
I was wrong.
I didn't get a second chance at life, but what I do have...oh, Martha, it's so much better. We're together again, most of us from the crash, and we've got eternity. There's no "now" here, so it's as if we all became aware of each other again at the same time. No waiting and missing each other between arrivals.
Hugo says hello! He doesn't remember coming to the Barge, but I think maybe that's for the best. He had a very long life, longer than anyone would have believed possible, but that's a subject for when I get back. Anyway, you'd never be able to tell his age, since he looks almost exactly the same as he did on the day we first exchanged words. We reverted, all of us, to the way we looked when we were all together.
You'll find a photo in the envelope, too--our friend Boone snapped it when we weren't paying attention. It doesn't flatter me very much, but Hugo looks fantastic, doesn't he?
I can't say much about where we moved on to, other than it's the most beautiful place I've ever seen. I couldn't imagine anything more perfect than this. It isn't heaven--I don't hold to any particular religion, as you know, but it doesn't conform to the concept held by any of the religions those in our group follow--unless Sartre was wrong and heaven is other people.
I think maybe he was.
Love,
- Libby
Hi, Morgan! I hope you're feeling better than you were the last time we spoke. I've been worried about you.
I'm here with Hugo now, and if what I do on the Barge is my job, then...what I have here, with him, is my home. It's so beautiful here; I just wish you could see it. Almost all of our group from the plane crash are here, and I can't remember ever feeling this way in life. I think it's the feeling of being at peace. Maybe it's just being able to love without looking over my shoulder for the next threat; maybe it's both of those things.
I won't say too much more, hon, because it's not my intention to hurt you when you're already going through a rough time. Just know that I'm thinking of you and wishing you all the best. I'm sending a picture with this; a friend of mine and Hugo's took it.
I'll be back before you know it, I promise.
Love,
- Libby
West and Billy,
I hope this letter finds the two of you doing well. I've found myself thinking of the two of you lately, and I don't know how long it's been on-Barge since I left...I'm not even sure how long it's been here. "Now" is an irrelevant concept in many ways, where I am. I didn't get my life back, but I got what comes after.
I'm happy here, with Hugo. It's so perfect that it nearly hurts sometimes, but it's a wonderful kind of hurt. I have everything I could have ever wanted in him, and I can only hope that that's what the two of you have found in each other as well. You both deserve that.
I've enclosed a photograph our friend took of us.
I'll stop by when I get back--it's been too long!
Love,
- Libby
Ruby,
Hi, sweetheart. I know you must be doing your job wonderfully--we can talk about it after I get back!
I'm with Hugo now--he lived a very long and meaningful life first--and I think this is literally the happiest I've ever been. I can't say much about what it's like here, but I can say that it's better than anything my lonely mind conjured up in the moments when I missed him the most. It might not be life, but it's wonderful.
Helping you to realize that you deserved a second chance is what enabled me to accept the same of myself, and I am so grateful that I was given the opportunity to work with you. I hope you're happy with your new life, I really do.
You'll find a photograph with this letter--a friend took it while we weren't paying attention.
Love,
- Libby
Sam,
I think I finally understand "waking up" somewhere and not being able to believe it's real. Enclosed is a photo--maybe that will show you what I mean.
I've moved on, and it's amazing here. The only way I can be sure it's not a fantasy is that even in my dreams, I don't feel as though I deserve something as...whole as this. I wish I could describe it to you in detail, but I don't think I could accurately capture what it is I'm seeing. Most of of us who survived the crash are here.
I'll be back, though. I'm not quite ready to quit the Barge completely yet. And when I return, I'll be by to see you.
Love,
- Libby
Martha,
I was wrong.
I didn't get a second chance at life, but what I do have...oh, Martha, it's so much better. We're together again, most of us from the crash, and we've got eternity. There's no "now" here, so it's as if we all became aware of each other again at the same time. No waiting and missing each other between arrivals.
Hugo says hello! He doesn't remember coming to the Barge, but I think maybe that's for the best. He had a very long life, longer than anyone would have believed possible, but that's a subject for when I get back. Anyway, you'd never be able to tell his age, since he looks almost exactly the same as he did on the day we first exchanged words. We reverted, all of us, to the way we looked when we were all together.
You'll find a photo in the envelope, too--our friend Boone snapped it when we weren't paying attention. It doesn't flatter me very much, but Hugo looks fantastic, doesn't he?
I can't say much about where we moved on to, other than it's the most beautiful place I've ever seen. I couldn't imagine anything more perfect than this. It isn't heaven--I don't hold to any particular religion, as you know, but it doesn't conform to the concept held by any of the religions those in our group follow--unless Sartre was wrong and heaven is other people.
I think maybe he was.
Love,
- Libby
Hi, Morgan! I hope you're feeling better than you were the last time we spoke. I've been worried about you.
I'm here with Hugo now, and if what I do on the Barge is my job, then...what I have here, with him, is my home. It's so beautiful here; I just wish you could see it. Almost all of our group from the plane crash are here, and I can't remember ever feeling this way in life. I think it's the feeling of being at peace. Maybe it's just being able to love without looking over my shoulder for the next threat; maybe it's both of those things.
I won't say too much more, hon, because it's not my intention to hurt you when you're already going through a rough time. Just know that I'm thinking of you and wishing you all the best. I'm sending a picture with this; a friend of mine and Hugo's took it.
I'll be back before you know it, I promise.
Love,
- Libby
West and Billy,
I hope this letter finds the two of you doing well. I've found myself thinking of the two of you lately, and I don't know how long it's been on-Barge since I left...I'm not even sure how long it's been here. "Now" is an irrelevant concept in many ways, where I am. I didn't get my life back, but I got what comes after.
I'm happy here, with Hugo. It's so perfect that it nearly hurts sometimes, but it's a wonderful kind of hurt. I have everything I could have ever wanted in him, and I can only hope that that's what the two of you have found in each other as well. You both deserve that.
I've enclosed a photograph our friend took of us.
I'll stop by when I get back--it's been too long!
Love,
- Libby
Ruby,
Hi, sweetheart. I know you must be doing your job wonderfully--we can talk about it after I get back!
I'm with Hugo now--he lived a very long and meaningful life first--and I think this is literally the happiest I've ever been. I can't say much about what it's like here, but I can say that it's better than anything my lonely mind conjured up in the moments when I missed him the most. It might not be life, but it's wonderful.
Helping you to realize that you deserved a second chance is what enabled me to accept the same of myself, and I am so grateful that I was given the opportunity to work with you. I hope you're happy with your new life, I really do.
You'll find a photograph with this letter--a friend took it while we weren't paying attention.
Love,
- Libby
Sam,
I think I finally understand "waking up" somewhere and not being able to believe it's real. Enclosed is a photo--maybe that will show you what I mean.
I've moved on, and it's amazing here. The only way I can be sure it's not a fantasy is that even in my dreams, I don't feel as though I deserve something as...whole as this. I wish I could describe it to you in detail, but I don't think I could accurately capture what it is I'm seeing. Most of of us who survived the crash are here.
I'll be back, though. I'm not quite ready to quit the Barge completely yet. And when I return, I'll be by to see you.
Love,
- Libby