Paul R Parkosewich

Realm Whisperer's Bantum Paul R Parkosewich

In early 1981, I had the good fortune to visit the Realm, that hypnogogic trail that exists between sleep and wakefulness. As I walked through my mind's eye, I witnessed the life of a seventy eight year old man who lived in another place and another time. His name was Franklin Charles but everybody from his era knew him as Bantam. For sure the place that Bantam existed is not my reality, not my state, as it is called New Amsterdam. The time was long ago, over half a century from today. Bantam who was once a world champion boxer and athletic coach for over 50 years struggles with a turning point in his life, forced retirement along with its associated baggage, aging and social prejudice. A wild dog Bantam calls the Gwyllgi brings death to the surrounding Adirondack region. An abusive Sheriff, Ray Sisk, refuses to recognize Bantam's efforts to convince him of the seriousness of the situation and tries to browbeat Bantum at every turn. Tim Shelton, a young long distance runner training in the forest, joins Bantam in a most frightening kind of way on a journey through the Adirondack Mountains in an effort to bring this terror to light. Perhaps Bantam lived in an alternate world, one of the many worlds that make up the Quantum Universe. Some might say that maybe he is just an archetype, a product my mind's symbolic expression foretelling future personal dilemmas. It's hard to say but none the less, it is a story, a strange, unnerving yet intriguing story... from the Realm.