Are
There Spirits after Death?
I
know I have asked this question once before, but now I have to ask one more
time. Do you believe in the hear-after? There have just been far
too many unexplainable things that have happened to me…or perhaps I should
say…for me. You know to help me in my life…and absolutely none of it has
been negative. I am not talking about bad spirits…I don’t even know if I
am talking about spirits at all…but I certainly am talking about life after
death. Is there life after death? If there is…what exactly is
life after death? Over time I have had many things happen that really has
me questioning if there really is life after death. Spirits may be a more
appropriate word to use than life, that is, if you believed in spirits after
death. Earlier this year I blogged about the ‘Here-After,’ or about
some experiences I had that were most unusual. I asked the readers
of these blogs, if they believed in such a thing. That same blog
described things that happened to me after Steve died. Since then…more
things have happened, only now I don’t believe it is Steve anymore, I now
believe it is…hell…I really don’t know what or who is it? I really want
to believe it is Jeff, because every time I am at my lowest emotional point,
something unusual happens, something unexplainable. Here is my story…
Earlier
this month I was lying in bed, not sleeping but reading online about election
results. My niece was running for office in another state, so I was
online trying to keep up with the results of that election. I was not
only online getting results but I was also texting and receiving texts from my
sister-in-law during the election. While on the computer…in my right ear
I clearly heard…
“Mom,
there is no reason for you to be living alone anymore.”
“What
the hell was that?” As the words were being spoken into my ear I could
also feel a warm breath on my ear. I instantly turn my head to the right
and at the same time my hand raced up to my ear cupping it as though trying to
protect it. “What the hell”…Keep in mind I was not asleep…I was wide
awake on my computer. In a split second, I jumped out of bed, and
flipped on the light. I am not sure what I was thinking I would find…and
honestly…I wasn’t even thinking. Of course there was nothing, no one in
the room, just me and Fritz, my cat. And NO…I was not afraid, not in the
least bit frightened…but definitely startled.
The voice in my ear…the words I heard, the voice which spoke to me…was
not a shout, nor was the voice loud…but it wasn’t a whisper either. It
was somewhere in-between. It was softly spoken directly to me,
directly in my ear…”Mom, there is no reason for you to be living alone
anymore.” That was what was said to me. And that is absolutely
something Jeff would have said to me...definitely would have said to me…there
is absolutely no doubt about that! But was it Jeff I heard? I
clearly heard the words. I undoubtedly heard someone, something…talk to
me…talk directly into my ear, to me.
Was
this for real? I know for a fact I was awake…wide eyed and awake.
There have been so many phenomenon’s or occurrences of unexplainable things
that have happened to me, not once…but time and again…from several loved ones
lost. I don’t understand but upon researching I found a book titled, The
Origin of Love which talks about Spirits after death.
“Each human soul born on earth as a human being has one
guardian spirit assigned to look after him or her whilst on earth. As a general
rule, the role of a guardian spirit is taken by one of the soul siblings, who
lived on earth most recently and has the most recent knowledge of the
three-dimensional world. Our guardian spirits try to protect us from evil and
danger, and send us inspirations so that we will make the correct decisions in
the most important phases of our lives.” (Okawa 2003)
I
ask you the reader, “Can this be true?” I personally do not have an
answer, all I know for sure is these things have happened to me, not once, not
twice, but a number of times. The earliest I can remember was when I was
twenty years old. My brother Manuel passed away and came to me in a very
vivid and surreal dream. So is this true…is someone floating around
trying to protect me. If so, who? Jeff? Steve? All I
know for sure is that things continue to happen…around me, both in my dreams
and while I am awake. Too many things keep happening…things that a
rational person cannot explain. Perhaps that is my answer…perhaps I am
not a sound person.
I
clearly remember another time I heard something…it was months after Jeff passed.
I again was lying in bed but quite honestly…I know I was sound asleep that
time. I was sound asleep until I was jerked awake by a shout…”Olgie!” I
jolted to a sitting position as I was awaken by the loudness of the
shout. It was my brother’s voice. I remember thinking at the time
the voice was that of my older brother. I couldn’t for the life of me
figure out why I would hear my brother shout my name, especially because he
lives in California. I certainly wasn’t dreaming about him that night…but
I was awakened to his voice shouting my name, “Olgie!” The voice was not
in my dreams…the voice was there in the room…extremely loud. I have
thought about that night often…and now with the events of the other night…this
night which happened last year has been on my mind more times than I can tell
you. It was just absolutely surreal and yet I knew then and now I know now
for sure…at least I think I know…it was real. This whole experience is
just crazy! I truly was asleep, and I was indeed awakened to the shouting
voice of my brother. After hearing the voice the other night…I now have
doubts that I heard my older brother shout my name…I now have to wonder if it
was my younger brother who shouted my name…my brother Slobby who died in
October 2013. The more I think about it…the more I rewind that
shout in my head…the more I believe it may have been my brother Slobby yelling
my name, screaming my name…to wake me.
I
know I am grasping at straws for an answer to whatever the hell happened. I can honestly say I
have given this subject much thought...and still I have no answers. But if you
believe Okawa;
“Death is not the end of life. Death is just a
departure for the Spirit World, which is our true home in the afterlife.
People today know about earthly things in much greater detail than they did in
the past, but when it comes to the important spiritual matters such as death
and the world after death, it can be said the people of the past were much more
knowledgeable. Information concerning the world after death is not taught
in schools, many people believe that talk of the world after death is old
fashion, and spend their lives in ignorance of it.” (Okawa 2003)
I
heard Jeff talk to me…am I going crazy… I do not think this is the case.
All I know without a doubt is Jeff would have definitely said those words to
me…has said similar things to me whilst he was alive. Insisted I start
dating so I could have a better life, a happy life. So did he talk to me
in death? I remember when Steve was in his last months…he would say
to me, “Honey, someone is tapping on my shoulder.” Or he would say,
“Honey, I can feel someone here with me, telling me it’s time.
I
remember saying to Steve, “It is probably Ramon (Steve’s father), tell him you
are not ready to go." Or I would
say, “It is God…tell him to wait…we are not ready for him to take you.”
About
two weeks before Steve was diagnosed with cancer he woke from a very vivid
dream he had. I too woke because I could feel him stirring, I could see he was
upset. “Honey, are you OK?” I asked him.
“I
just had the weirdest dream,” he said. I could immediately sense he was
upset. “I dreamt my parents were here talking to me. My father was
saying, “It is time Sonny boy. It is time for you to come with us.
Your Mama and I are here to get you. Come with us Sonny. It is
time.”
Steve
was clearly upset. He said his dream was very real…he said it was as
though he wasn’t dreaming…as though his parents were actually there talking to
him, telling him his time here on earth was up. Two weeks later we were
told Steve was dying, with stage four stomach cancer…we were told he had four
months to live. In the last two weeks of Steve’s life, he could feel more
people surrounding him, touching him, and caressing his shoulder.
So
keep this in mind…Steve was a believer in God…Jeff had his doubts there was a
God. And even though Jeff had his doubts…he kept his father’s Bible…he
read it and had pages marked in it. And
the songs his children picked for Jeff’s video (which were Jeff’s favorites
songs), all were of a spiritual nature. I
am not sure if that makes any difference what-so-ever…but if it does what
exactly would the difference be? Did Jeff speak to me? Did Steve’s
parents tell him of his upcoming demise? Steve did not question it…he
knew his parents came to him. He felt at peace knowing they would be
there to greet him as he passed from this world to the next. He spoke of
it often…he believed it. I often think about this…and I so hope Steve was
there tapping on Jeff’s shoulder in his last days. It makes me feel
better imagining that he was there to greet Jeff as he too passed from this world
to the next.
There
are many books written about communication with the deceased, one is, “The
Afterlife of Billy Fingers” which was written by Annie Kagen. In her book
the author talks about her deceased brother and how he describes to her in detail
his life after his death. She communicated with her departed sibling
many, many times…while she was awake. Kagen shares her extraordinary
journey into the mysteries of the afterlife of her brother. So is this possible? In doing research
there are numerous accounts of after death communications with loved
ones. “Our guardian spirit always wishes for our personal happiness, and
for the progress and prosperity of the earthly world.” (Okawa 2003) If
this is true, would it be so hard to believe Jeff would want me to be happy
even though he is not here on earth. Did my brother try to reach me…did
he shout my name? Did he want me to hear him, to know he was here with
me? I really do not know what to
believe…all I know is I heard what I heard…and someone talked aloud, directly in
my ear.
Steve
was open in his spiritual beliefs…but where do spirits come in to these
beliefs, if at all, in Biblical terms? What about angels? Could
angels be after death spirits? There are many writings in the Bible about
spirits, about angels, about resurrections, about spirits leaving the body
behind. An article by Richard P.
Bucher, ‘Where Does the Soul Go After
Death,' wrote “According to Scripture, the soul leaves the body at death.” If this is true…and if the soul/spirit,
depending upon your belief, does not immediately go with Christ…where then,
does it go? Is it just floating about? I do not have an answer. How many stories in the Bible talk about
resurrection? The writers of the Bible
wrote several stories of resurrection implying the soul itself returned to the
body. First, there is the example of
Elijah raising the widow’s son from the dead.
“And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and
cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul
come into him again. And the LORD heard
the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he
revived” (1 Kings 17:21-22). This passage specifically says that the child’s
soul ‘came into him again.’ Bucher goes
on to give a second example, “Jesus’ raising of Jairus’s twelve year old
daughter from the dead. “And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. But taking her by the hand he called, saying,
"Child, arise.” And her spirit returned,
and she got up at once (Luke 8:53-55). As in the example, this text also speaks
of the soul of a dead person “returning” into the body.” (Bucher)
And
how many of us have not heard of the raising of Lazarus from the dead? The stories go on and on. If you believe in the ‘Good Book’ the stories
are there…if you don’t believe in religion, there are still many stories in
modern times where people have been revived, and tell of things that happened
while they were not breathing…or dead.
“The Lutheran Church
teaches, ‘The souls of those who have died will return to their bodies which
will be raised to stand before Christ on Judgment Day. And The Seventh Day Adventists’ interpretation
of Luke 23:43 is well known. Since they steadfastly believe in soul sleep, they
get around this clear passage by claiming that the punctuation in Bible
translations is wrong. Instead of the passage reading, “Truly, I say to you,
today you will be with me in Paradise,” they hold that it should read, “Truly I
say to you today, you will be with me in Paradise” (not today but on the Last
Day).” (Bucher)
This belief of the Seventh Day Adventist was
Steve’s belief. He believed the way he
was brought up to believe, he knew...that he would not directly go to
heaven. He silently scoff when people
talked about going directly to heaven…he always said, “I am ready. I will go when he takes me, meanwhile I will
just be.”
I
found another article that talk about spirits or souls. The author of “What Does the Bible Say About
Death?” writes, “If souls existed as separate entities that lived on after
we died, that would mean we have immortality. However, the Bible says human
beings do not have immortality. Only God is immortal (1 Timothy 6:15, 16). Paul
says that the righteous “seek for glory, honor, and immortality” (Romans 2:7).
If we had immortal souls, why would the righteous seek after something they
already have?” So if you believe this,
it says we have no souls, no spirits after we die. We just die…and sleep.
The material I found in researching this is but a grain
of sand, for there is an abundance of material both in support of spirits after
death, and in repudiating the same. I
wish I had an answer to all these things that keep happening to me. I don’t have the answer. I guess it all depends on individual beliefs
in spirits. Are there are souls/ghosts
who choose to remain at the scene of their death for a while. Can there be spirits who choose to comfort
someone who is grieving, or have other reasons to stay near the place of their
death for a while? Do spirits, ghost, souls
have to be bad for us to believe in them?
Why is it easier for people to believe in bad spirits…but they have troubles
believing in good spirits?
Hell, I do not have the answer! What I do know is people have been visiting me…dead, spirits, souls, ghosts, angels…I do not know what to call them. I do not even know for sure if they actually visited me…I do know the incidences have helped me tremendously, especially when I needed it most. And the dreams…both Steve’s dream of his parents, and my ‘Spider Dream’ described in an earlier blog…not to mention the things that have happened while I have been awake…both at night and in broad daylight, were just too damn vivid to doubt.
Hell, I do not have the answer! What I do know is people have been visiting me…dead, spirits, souls, ghosts, angels…I do not know what to call them. I do not even know for sure if they actually visited me…I do know the incidences have helped me tremendously, especially when I needed it most. And the dreams…both Steve’s dream of his parents, and my ‘Spider Dream’ described in an earlier blog…not to mention the things that have happened while I have been awake…both at night and in broad daylight, were just too damn vivid to doubt.
Years ago after Steve died and these types of occurrences
kept happening I did similar research. I
do not remember who wrote this but I remember reading, “There are souls who
choose to remain at the scene of their death for a while, there are others who
choose to stay and comfort someone who is grieving, and there are still others
who have other reasons to stay near the place of their death.”
The day Jeff perished…there was a tapping, a slight
squeezing or caressing on my knee…for the entire first week after Jeff died I
felt tapping on my knee as in a caressing nature. Every time I felt it I talked about it to
those around me. Was it Jeff, assuring
me he was finally at peace? Was it Steve
letting me know he was with Jeff? All of
these strange occurrences are just too unbelievable, yet I can assure you these things really did happen. So have I at least given
you something to contemplate? Do you
have an opinion? I ask once more, what you
think…“Do you believe in the ‘Here-After?”
