Black, chapters 1-8

Yes, I read up through chapter 7 yesterday. Did I mention I read quickly? Already Thomas's predicament poses a number of interesting questions. First of all, what is real? He finds himself living in two worlds, and which is real? Is it the black/colored forest? Is it the 21st century world? What is real? To him, when he is in one the other seems to be a dream. But this makes me ask myself, what is real? Because I know that this world is just a breath, that one day I will live in a world that is so much more than this one. Though I want to make the most of this life, I hope that I always remember that there is more to it. What is that quote? There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio? I'll have to look it up. Secondly, as we begin to meet the people of the colored forest, it makes me wonder what life was like in the garden, and what it would have been like if Adam and Eve had not tasted of the fruit. I think that is where Ted was going with this civilization, though in the context of this separate world. But imagine relationships with pure innocence. Ehere each is quite literally perfect. Know you could choose any man or woman as a mate and love him madly because they were all perfect, and because you were filled with love and made to love as God loves you. Relationships in our fallen world are fraught with peril. We fail each other daily. We are assuredly not perfect. But what would that have been like? Enjoy this glimpse Ted gives us. Third, and if you have not read the whole series, just skip this please, but one of the Roush makes mention that no one has gone into the black forest and come back out, EXCEPT one other time. Now, generally Ted doesn't put such things in there unless he is going to get to that story in some other book, some other time. I want to pay attention this time and see if that story comes out. I also now make sense of all the references to this seeming familiar in an odd way. Poor Thomas, stuck in this circle. I kinda feel sorry for him, knowing his choices will lead him back to the same place. Does Ted want us to think that? That he will keep repeating this cycle? Or do we think that Thomas might make different choices at some point along the line and change the outcome? I just don't know. And if Ted were reading this I doubt he would answer. I tend to think he wants you to make your own assumptions. So now I head into Chapter 8, as Thomas wakes up back in the 21st century after hearing that that world would end in 2010, the current year for him, due to a virus, which we have already hear discussed by our villains in the first chapters. And ironically the only reason they are interested in it is because of Thomas. Ted just loves to create Paradoxes it his twisted series, doesn't he?