My cousin and I received an email from a friend today; this is what she said:

Okay, here goes nothing. Janet, several times over the past year I get a picture of your mom in my head. This morning it was a barrage of words and then driving in the car clear as day she directed my thinking, I had to write it down because she said she didn't trust me "one whit" to remember it all. The messages are kooky but I have to give them to you. She said there was a chance you would close off and not talk to me so I almost didn't do this, as a matter of fact I am trying to talk myself out of it now. She wants you to call me to have me tell you about all these "slides" and she wants Maribeth on the phone in cause you hang up on me she wants to be heard all the way through. I'm sorry, I don't know what else to do about this. Here are my notes I wrote driving in the car this morning. Look at them and see if you want to call me. It is supposed to make you guys happy. It made me laugh at some parts, she's very direct. Surprisingly I was really nervous about getting it right. Again, I'm sorry to upset you, but there have just been too many coincidences the last few days to make me ignore it.

Now, before you go shaking your heads (I see you and you shaking your heads now), bear in mind that this person, like most of my friends, is NOTHING like me. She's career oriented, extremely driven, a no-nonsense type of person.

So, to hear this from her gives me pause.

Maribeth replied, in part:

This sounds so much like Uncle Betty. Thanksgiving was such a big deal for her and for us. All my Thanksgivings growing up were spent with her and Jan and the family. I have the SLIDES! Yes, when my folks went into their small apt, I got all the slides. I wonder if we look we can find some Thanksgiving ones from years gone by.

And the first thing out of my mouth was:

"...you remind me so much of my mother in that you don't understand me in the least LOL! WHY would I not talk to you? I think it's GREAT!!!"

She had an urgent sense of having to talk to me (and Maribeth), to make sure she "passed on the message"; and once the conversation was over, she had a profound sense of relief.

Maribeth...I think we need to set a place at the table for Mom this year, after all!

Have any of you ever had something like this happen to you?

Wow...freaky stuff. So there really is another place after life here?!

I have not had something like this happen to me but it definitely makes me pause. I find comfort in knowing that others experience these things and hope that when the time comes that I must lose someone close to me that I can be open and receive such things as well.

Yep. Not that exact thing of course because why would your mom want to talk to ME about the slides. :-D But that sort of thing...yes.

Wow- that is so weird! The world works in mysterious ways.

I had things happen, things that cannot be explained in a rational way.

Absolutely amzed the heck out of me! What she said just made total sense to me!

Wow, that's really interesting!!

I've never had anything like that happen to me.

What was the message? I'm so confused! It does sound like stuff that happens to you all the time. I swear you're psychic!

Yes, it has happened to me in the past. I kept having reoccuring dreams about a man with red hair that walked out of a midst with a wolf beside him. Finally, I found out that the man I dreamed of looked exactly like my best friend's cousin's grandfather, who had passed a long time ago. His last name was Wolfgang, incidentally, and he was known by his flaming red hair. He wanted me to pass a message for his grandson. My friend, unfortunately did not believe me, so I held back. The longer I waited to tell the young man, the more I had the dream, and the more urgent the man seemed. After some sleuthing to find out where the grandson was, and to find a phone number, I finally, swallowed pride and fear and told the young man the message, anyway. I was so glad I did, I felt relief, and though it was emotional for me, I knew I did the right thing, because the young man was going through a very difficult time and the message was one of hope, encouragement, but above all...love. After that, me and my best friend were never close like we were before. But I made the choice, to follow through, and I have no regrets.

I have had things happen too that are unexplainable.....

.....and I DO believe that our loved ones are around us in some form.....

....it can be creepy and comforting all in the same.....

that really is interesting and comforting in a way as well...I'm sure your mom would love a place at the TG table this year...I had vivid, realistic dreams of my grandfather after he died...long conversations with him that never felt like a dream, more intense and real...

I've had some weird things happen, though of a different variety. :) Dream things mostly, and they happen with reasonable regularity. So it doesn't actually seem all that weird to me. :) Can I explain it rationally? Heck no. But it happens anyway, so I might as well make the best of it. ;)