There Is No God Code.

     In the world of gaming, predominantly in video games, there is something known as “The God Code.” Normally, it’s a sequence of button presses that will make the character you play godlike. One of the most famous is the God password in the Unreal Tournament series. Another is The Konami Code for the game Contra. Which any gamer can recite. Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start will start you off with thirty lives. Codes like these gave you the ability to cheat death in one form or another.

     A long time ago, I began to wonder what would happen if the real world had that. If we could type a word or press some buttons in order to become immortal. To laugh in Death’s face and then flip him off. What would the world be like?

     The Good News: How cool would it be to have all of the historical figures that you’ve read about around to talk to and learn from? Imagine if Ben Franklin or, Gandhi were alive today. Would they be impressed with the times? Disgusted? Would John F. Kennedy still be president? I had heard tales that an amendment to the Constitution was being contemplated to allow J.F.K. to run for multiple terms.

      Best Part. None of the people we love would die. They would be around forever. We’d never have to go through all of the pain, heartache and depression that come with loss. I know a few pets I wouldn’t mind having back but in all seriousness…

     I lost my stepfather, Randy, when I was fifteen years old. The man was everything to me. After my biological father left, he took on the responsibility of three boys. A responsibility that he could have easily turned down. At twenty, He had his whole life ahead of him. Out of love, for my mother and for us, he gave his all for a prepackaged family. He taught me how to treat a woman, to respect my elders. All of those things a father is supposed to teach his son.

    One day, in ninety-seven, I came home from bowling when I got a call from my mom who was at the hospital. My father. My true father. The only man I will ever call Dad; had had from what I understand was an aneurysm and I can’t remember what else. Though the doctors “tried everything”, He passed away on that, and I swear this is true, dark, stormy, September night.

     If there was a god code, I swear, I would have used it for him. I got cheated out of a great life. And I mean that I was denied out of having this great man there for all the big moments in my life thus far. I’m still very angry about it. I’m hurt to this very day. Do you want to hear what’s worse? He passed on a Friday. The following Monday, He was supposed to sign the papers to have my brothers and I legally adopted. That hurts the most I think. I would have been his son for real and it was taken away from me.

     And now the Bad News: I know what you’re thinking. “ Dude, That wasn’t the bad news?” Nope.  Here’s the rub as they say. The world would be GREATLY overpopulated. Natural resources would be depleted. Food would be scarce. And I know that we all have that one family member that we wish would… well… you know.

     Not too mention all of the villains in the world’s history still alive and kicking. Hitler? Hussein? Bundy? Bin Laden? We’d be screwed. Seriously. The world would be in ashes. We’d all be back in the Stone Age. It’d be like Mad Max or something. Here’s a question for you. How would a suicide bomber work? Ponder that one for a bit.

     To put a nice little bow on all this. As much as we would love to be immortal. As much as I would love to have my father in my life still. As much as it would be great to live forever with the person we love the most. In reality, we have to face the fact that death is inevitably unavoidable. I know that there are thousands of people that believe in an afterlife. For me, what is beyond this life scares the shit out of me. I wish I knew. Because in the end, as I said in the beginning, There is no God Code.