So I'm trying to write a short story, first time doing this too. My Plot: A girl has died. When she's in heaven, she is trying to tell the angels that she should be allowed back because shes too young and all that jazz. They deny this of course, but tell her there is only one way she can go back to her family. To become their guardian angel. In order to do that she needs to go through three tests. I have two ideas for tests but they don't seem right. What do you guys suggest? What do you think a Guardian Angel makes?
Hmm A guardian angel would probably need to care about who she is guarding. Could make a test out of that. Maybe you could have whoever is testing her put her into a trance or make her dream where she is in a situation where she has to choose to protect someone and die or be injured or let the person die. I will keep thinking on it and get back to you if I happen upon anymore ideas.
I was thinking of that as one test. And you coming up with that as well, must be a good sign! I guess that will be my first test. Thanks!
I guess you'd need to be loving/caring, brave and patient in order to be a guardian angel. So you've got the first test, the second one could be a forced scenario where she has to see the bad side of her family, their regrets and mistakes; the third could be that she has to face her own death again.
Hi, Traditionally angels are not people returned to Earth, they're a distinct race of beings. However if you want to travel down this path I'd suggest you look at the typical traits ascribed to angels. First they are of God and God is love, so I imagine she would have to show love in some way. Perhaps showing love even for those who might have done her wrong in her previous life. Next, angels carry the word of God, and with some notable exceptions, they are obediant to him. So a test of unquestioning obediance of some sort. Third, she's a guardian. So presumably some form of sacrifice to protect her charges. Hope that helps. I'd suggest you read Stephen Donaldson's Unworthy of the Angel in Daughter of the Regals, for inspiration. Cheers, Greg.
To be a guardian angel I think they'd have to be caring and gentle - show kindness to people and not judge them at first sight. They would look for the good in everyone. I think they should also be brave and willing to sacrefice themselves without complaint. They'd also need a stronge will and be decive (quick to make up their minds). Not being able to make up their minds quickly could seriously injure or kill their charge. [Edite]Just thought, they may need different types of Guardian Angels; everyone is different so they'd need a guardian angels that is suited for them. For example, a shy and passive person would need a guardian angel that would encourage them to be braver and protect them from harm. Where as a deardevil that continually seeks thrills would been a one that is always thinking about consequences of actions and looking out for their charge to ensure they don't to something totally stupid![/Edite] Hope any of this helps you and sorry for any spelling mistakes.
I would think God in his wisdom would know if something specific needed doing. That he'd know what the right thing to do was, the right time to do it, where it needed to be done and what little girl was needed to do it.
Really, it's your story. You should come up with your own rules and scenario for angellic guardianship, something that helps drive your story. Preferably something that motivates the guardian angel once he or she has been assigned or attached to the person. For example, you could look at Clarence in It's a Wonderful Life. He's a kindhearted soul, but not particularly brilliant. Helping someone through a crisis, as that person's guardian angel, is the trial by which he earns his wings. His feeling his way through it to find a way to reach George is a major part of the story.
I think they'd also have to have pretty good judgment, or maybe prescience, so they wouldn't 'save' someone from something they need to go through.
THis is a fabulous idea. The whole idea that we are down here on earth to learn and grow, and trials help us do just that. So a guardian angels would have to leave their people alone enough to grow. Like making sure they aren't of the "helicopter parent" mindset. That they could allow us to suffer through things that make us better and to grow from our disappointments. There's a difference between saving someone from a crazy stalker or a truck running a red light and trying to save someone from themself (it's okay to get blisters learning to cut firewood but not to cut your leg off).
Who says the guardian angel has to be good, lol? Maybe they could be obsessed, like the lethally over-protective/possessive mom. The whole test thing seems a bit too structured and a bit callous feeling for something as personal-sounding as a guardian angel. A guardian angel seems to be someone who simply pursues in death what they have sincerely felt in life- an enduring need to protect or look out for the ones they love. Making a contest out of it seems to take something away from it. But...if there must be a test. Perhaps it is not as formal as a test given but a test endured in the act of being a guardian spirit. Something that threatens the safety or existence of the guardian spirit itself. What better way to test true loyalty than with sickness, death, harm, or sacrifice in some way to oneself. In life, it tends to be the dividing line between the real and the fake so in death it might not be much different.
I really like this idea. It seems deeper and more significant than, say, God or someone making the GA jump through three formal hoops. What if one of the "tests" involves confronting hell, or some other dark/scary area of the spiritual world?
