The Sixteenth Night

Nick looked cheerful as he stepped into my house, wearing a bright smile as he said,

“Did I thank you yet today for Easter Sunday?”

“Not today,” I replied, smiling back.

“Easter was never what you showed me it could be.”

“Not just chocolate and bunnies?”

“Thanks for letting me be part of your world.”

“I should be the one thanking you for being part of mine. It was the first Easter in years I didn’t spend alone. Having someone around is... a challenge.”

“Oh man, that chocolate bunny of yours? Totally delicious.”

“I’m glad you liked it.”

“You know,” he said, pausing a beat, “I’m starting to realize I begin getting ready to see you, like, two hours before we actually meet.”

“Really? So now I’m responsible for you?”

He laughed and went on, “Even the ocean doesn’t feel like it used to. It used to be kinda just... pretty, y’know? Now it’s full of memories.”

“So the Little Prince taught you a thing or two as well?”

“Draw me a sheep?” he asked, in a childlike voice.

“And you heard him! Saint-Exupéry was a writer as writers ought to be. When I read him, I often wonder what heights someone like Albert Camus could have reached — as a writer and as a person — had he listened to Jesus instead of Sartre.”

“Saint-Exupéry was Catholic?”

“His family was, and he was baptized. He later wandered different paths, but never too far from his roots. Still, the closer one is to Jesus, the better one becomes — and in that sense, he was far better off than Camus.”

“Was that Sartre guy an atheist?”

“Sartre was a monster — and yes, an atheist. He and his partner, Simone, deserve the title of philosopher only because they took their questioning to the ultimate edge of human experience, imagining life without God. But their discoveries weren’t shocking: if God doesn’t exist, nothing makes sense. And the fruit of that thinking? Young people taking their own lives. Of course, those two demons didn’t kill themselves — instead, they surrendered to every kind of degradation.”

“That’s why you said the other day, when the Church goes bad, the world goes bad?”

“One doesn’t need to be religious to recognize the existence of God. Humanity has done so since the days of cave dwellers. Recognizing God brings unity — it gives meaning to everything, puts all things in their proper place. It unites people, creates culture, and from that, politics emerges. Catholicism is the highest point religion has reached in human history, because in it, God reveals Himself to man. The more the Catholic Church flourishes, the more every area of human life, except the perverse ones, flourishes too. It’ll never be Paradise on earth — but it will always be better. Without the Church, there’s no social unity, no real cultural output, and politics becomes just politicking. Compare The Little Prince with Harry Potter. The young wizard may entertain, but he isn’t art the way the Little Prince is. Saint-Exupéry gave the world culture. Rowling just made money for herself.”

“Man,” Nick said, shaking his head with a grin, “sometimes your thoughts are like... a total brain-twist.”

“I wouldn’t call it an opinion — any honest historian would confirm what I’ve said, in broad strokes. But now — get ready for dinner!”

Nick breathed in deeply, savoring the aroma from the pots, and smiled in quiet delight.