A message from beyond?

Back on the 30th of June, my father, [and best friend] died. He had been Ill for about 6 months, but before that, in his own words had "67 good years". The cause of his death was Cancer of the prostate.

I had a general bad feeling over that 6 months, I knew he was seriously ill, I knew, because he knew, and it was written all over him. I miss him terribly now, but that's life.

Before he died, I made a request. I asked him that if the worst was to come about, and there was existence beyond this realm, that he give me a sign, that he somehow let me know.

There was a reception after the funeral, at his mothers farm house. There is a road that cuts right through the middle of the farm, and a gateway that leads to the house, which everyone parked outside. I was one of the last to leave, and as I did, the number plate of the car parked nearest to the gate caught my eye. The first three letters were JJH. These three letters just happen to be the initials of my late father.

Now this makes my head hurt. I understand that it is just a co-incidence, right? But when I think about the amount of cars driving around the roads of this country, and the amount of different combinations of letters and numbers that the display on their plates, well, I'm no mathematician, but I feel that the odds against this particular car displaying his initials begin to stack up.

I post this here, because I would love to hear any thoughts any of you may have, or any similar stories. I have always thought that there must be more to existence then this reality, I don't know if this can count as proof, but I'd love to think it was.

Cheers.

I'm very sorry for your loss. My father died unexpectedly at the age of 48 just four years ago. His funeral services were on my 20th birthday. It's kind of ironic after reading your post, because I considered him not only my father but my best friend. I know a lot of people say that about their parent(s)- but he truly was my best friend. I always believed that he would die young, maybe because his father died when my dad was 11. I've always thought of asking someone to come back and make contact with me after their death, but I've never been able to or willing to say it. In my father's case, I never really had the opportunity before it was too late.

Whether that license plate was a coincidence or a message from your dad, you should be thankful either way. Anything that reminds you of him and the life he lived is a good thing. From what I've been told its not always easy to figure out what is a message from a lost loved one and what is just a coincidence. A psychic that I visited with my sister a few years back, who allegedly contacted my father (and I believe she did for countless reasons), told me that when they first die it is hard for them to do certain things in our world. I guess its like the movie "Ghost" if you've ever seen it, where it took the guy a long time and a lot of practice to be able to move things after he died. She said one of the first things a spirit is able to do is to leave coins places, like right on the ground where you step out of your vehicle. That was amazing to me because I noticed that happening a lot before she told me, and ever since. It happens a lot at my home and there is no logical explenation for it because I'm the only person who parks in that spot and I don't carry coins in my pocket, so theres no way I could have dropped them there.

I guess the important thing is to not get caught up waiting for your father to contact you. He may, he may not. He may and you might not even realize that it is him and that he is trying to contact you when it does happen. Whats important is that you honor his memory, live how he would want you to live. Make him proud. You don't need to hear from him now because I believe someday you'll be with him again forever.

That's just my two cents and I apologize if I rambled on at all. I hope things work out for you and I sincerely hope that you don't end up dwelling on your father's death as I have done myself for so long. Be thankful for the time you spent with him here on Earth, and do your best to keep his memory alive by telling others about him.

Thank you Rasputin13. No apologies are necessary [especially not for rambling, It's all I ever do].

Of course, it probably was just coincidence, but it has been playing on my mind since the event. I guess if I am ever to know, it [hopefully] wont be for a while yet. I really should try to work out what the odds are of such an occurrence happening, out of interest if nothing more, but I'm no mathematician.

Here's another one for you: I had a half brother, on my mothers side, from her first husband who died due to illness. He was more like a real brother though, lived in the same house, used to eat chicken nuggets and watch Conan movies together. Anyway, I digress.

He was in REME, and was posted to Germany where he was killed in an accident. My mother [Irish Catholic] swears blind that just before she got the phone call telling her the terrible news, she was out in the kitchen doing something, and she looked up, only to see her departed first husband, clear as day, standing there looking at her.

Now, I find it easy to write whole massive sections of the population off as nutjobs when they relate stories such as this, I find it a lot harder to do when it comes from my Mum. I would never doubt a word she said, especially not in a context such as this.

If you ask me straight, "do you think they are still out there somewhere?" I would have to say "yeah". There will never be any kind of proof, and where I wouldn't describe myself as religious, I guess this is something I just have to take on faith.

Yeah, anyway. Thanks.

Originally posted by Implosion

I was one of the last to leave, and as I did, the number plate of the car parked nearest to the gate caught my eye. The first three letters were JJH. These three letters just happen to be the initials of my late father.

I think you got what you asked for. I think you should enjoy it. I am sorry for your loss and will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

I'm glad you had a wonderful relationship with your dad that apparently meant a tremendous amount to him, even on the other side.

I am sorry to hear of your loss, I know losing your father must be tough.

As to your experience though, there is something to this. When I lost my father, our whole family and even outsiders experienced things that have never happened before or since. Things ranging from appliances turning on and off (they never did anything like this before and never have since then), to things that could be considered more coincidences like what you are mentioning. For me, as a Christian, I really do not know what to make of it. Whether this is the departed person being allowed to do this, if it is from God as an indication to give you comfort, if people are more open to noticing things out of the ordinary at a time of loss, or what. I do know that it does happen though. I would suggest that you look up ADC or After Death Communication to read more on the subject.

I would caution you that I have seen where some people get way more caught up in this then they should, and think they are communicating with a departed relative for years after they are gone. ADC is one sided, it not really communication its more like indications that the person still exists and is ok. For us this crescendoed then stopped within a week of the funeral. I would think that if things continued to happen much beyond that, or you get to where you think you are having a two-sided communication, it would be time to go talk to someone about it though.

Originally posted by Implosion

He was in REME, and was posted to Germany where he was killed in an accident. My mother [Irish Catholic] swears blind that just before she got the phone call telling her the terrible news, she was out in the kitchen doing something, and she looked up, only to see her departed first husband, clear as day, standing there looking at her.

My brother was in Viet Nam and was the sole survivor of a helicopter crash. He was burned over 60% of his body and experienced an NDE....but I also digress.

On the day my brother's helicopter crashed (my parents did not receive the telegram for a day or two afterwards) the picture of my brother that my oldest brother kept on a wall in his house fell off the wall and crashed to the floor. We don't have anyway of knowing if it was at the same time as the crash, but it was on the same day.

I had quite a strange occurance today. Actually it started back a few days.

A high school friend of mine died in an accident a few days ago. Around the time it happened, but before I knew, the power flashed on and off for my area.

Of course I thought nothing of it. The news of my friends death hit hard.

Today at the funeral, during one speech, it was mentioned that his life was taken so quickly, how it was like the power suddenly went off.

It was very weird. Coincidence or not, it gave me chills and made we wonder.

Originally posted by Valhall ...the picture of my brother that my oldest brother kept on a wall in his house fell off the wall and crashed to the floor.

Originally posted by Dulcimer ...it was mentioned that his life was taken so quickly, how it was like the power suddenly went off.

Well. Both of those sent a chill right up my spine.

Thanks to you all for your responses, you serve as a reminder that people can be great. I thought this subject might be a little personal, but it seems a lot of people have these stories to share. I know I for one would love to hear them, so if you have one, please, be my guest.

[edit on 3/12/05 by Implosion]

It seems like we're always looking for ways to justify in our minds that our loved ones are OK on the otherside and that they can contact us from time to time. Whether it is all in our heads or whether it's real, is anybody's guess. I'm sure some people argue either way.

As for my personal opinion, it just seems like this sort of thing happens too often that there could be THAT MANY coincidences for so many different people from so many different walks of life. And frankly... it's happened to me. I've never actually told anyone about this...

Back in March, one of my best friends passed away. She took a bad fall, and was in a coma-like state, critical condition, for about a week before she finally passed. I didn't get a chance to see her, as I live in Illinois and she was staying down in Florida for school, which was where this happened.

Anyways, that week was pretty trying, as everyday her condition was changing for better or for worse, and no one really knew what was going to happen. I had coms with the family down there, and was keeping up on the situation via phone. Wasn't really much to do but pray at that point. Particularly, that Thursday night was more restless then any of the rest of the nights that week.

It was one of those nights where you just don't sleep. You may doze off for a little bit, but any little noise will wake you back up. Around 1:30 AM, my phone rang.

The Caller ID only said "Unknown Call," and I assumed it was someone maybe calling from the hospital and they probably had a Caller ID Block. I answered... not really sure what to expect. What I heard on the other end, I still am not sure to this day.

It was, basically, just a raspy voice as if someone was trying to whisper but barely had the breath to speak. I couldn't make out any tangible words, and before I knew it the call had ended.

I wasn't sure if I was awake or dreaming at that point, but I FELT awake. You know how you just KNOW that you have to be awake? Yet, it seemed so odd that surely I had to be asleep. I checked the Recent Calls again on my phone, but Unknown Calls don't show up in the Recent List. At least, not on Nextel.

Finally, I fell back asleep and woke up the next morning to my phone ringing once again. This time, it was from her brother's cell phone down in Florida. I already knew what the news was going to be... just had that feeling. We shared a few words and in passing, I asked him if anyone had tried to call me the night before. He said no, since it happened around 2:30 AM their time, they figured they'd just let me sleep... no point in waking me up.

After I got off the phone with him it hit me... 2:30 AM in Florday would have been right around 1:30 AM right here in Illinois.

I'd heard of this sort of thing happening before, and read different ghost stories about it when I was a kid. Just never really thought it would happen to me. I still don't know for sure whether or not I was really awake or dreaming that night, but I darn sure felt awake. It just seemed too real and that strange feeling was just too real to dismiss.

I never told anyone about this. I certainly didn't talk to any of the family about it. Not really something you can just bring up in idle conversation, that you got a phone call from the ghost of their deceased daughter the night she passed away.

Not sure if this helps, but the best advice I can give is just to enjoy it, much like everyone else said.

take care
aaron

everything happens for a reason. coincidence does not excist.
whether it was a message from your dad or not...who knows.

Originally posted by Implosion
I understand that it is just a co-incidence, right?

I suppose if you believe in coincidence, you might think that. I have had many messages from people who have gone on. Most notably, my mother and oldest sister. I believe in contact from the next realm (whatever that is) 100% because I have experienced it. So has my surviving sister.

The night after my mother died, my sister and her ex-husband spent a very meaningful night together (they were divorced at the time, but still good friends). During the whole night, my sister said she felt Mom there with them, almost like there were 3 people in the room.

The next day, my sister's ex-husband had a message on his answering machine. In a voice that sounded somewhat like a combination between my sister and my mom, "Thank you for last night, it was beautiful." When he tried to play it again, it was gone.

There are many other contact stories I have experienced myself. I've even physically felt my mom's arms around me, and heard her voice.

I think it's a matter of whether you choose to accept it as what you asked for. I have also found that if I"m open to it and don't feel embarrassed, I can return communication to my mom.

If you're open to it, you can try that. Just tell your dad that you're not sure about the license plate and that you need some more convincing, you'd like to see something else. See what happens.

Implosion

I just wanted you to know I got your message and I am grateful you shared that with me.

Appearently, you can't send U2U's if you haven't posted more then 20 times, and I just joined last week so I'm not quite there yet. I had a very well written reply, and as soon as I hit send it was lost and I was greeted with the message about the Posting Quota

Anyways, thanks again for sharing that... I know that was probably difficult for you. It's good to share experiences like that sometimes, it helps to know that other people out there have similiar situations... or sometimes nearly exact situations.

I won't ramble on, but I'll just say your message pretty much made my day. Thanks.

take care
aaron

Sincerest sympathies to all who have recents losses..
My Dad died you age 55 in his sleep [cause of death unknown], he had been telling us one day he would just not wake up.
Anyway, I am a watchmaker, taught by my Dad and I had a watch I could not figure out what was wrong with it, so I kept it covered in a glass dome.
One night, I heard the chair that goes to my bench roll around upstairs. and I went to see what the noise was..
At first all I noticed was the pulled out bench chair, but the next thing I saw almost gave me a heart attack..The watch under the glass was running perfectly..I said 'thanks, Daddy'..Yes the can do things after a while like was told in Ghost..Still gives me chills..

[edit on 6-12-2005 by siriuslyone]

Just a few days ago a woman I know went to work one morning feeling particularly down in spirits. It was the anniversary of her son's passing. He had died at the age of 20 yrs. due to a genetic heart defect. She had been thinking that as time went on that people were beginning to forget about Jeff.
When she got to work she was told that a new staff had been hired and she was responsible for spending the day with him to train him in in his new job. After the introductions were made the young man looked at her and said, "wow!!! Are you Jeff's Mom?". "Yes.", she replied, somewhat startled. Turns out the young man had gone to school with Jeff all through their youths. As the two went through their day the young man told story after story about Jeff and the times they had spent together, telling her that he missed him a great deal and thought of him often.
My friend says that she could have gotten no greater gift on that day...the very day she needed it most.

I just want to thank everybody who has posted their own experiences. It means a lot. I wonder how many millions of people worldwide have similar stories to share, or to keep to themselves for fear of ridicule.

Anyway, Cheers!

I came across this thread via another more recent one. I believe that my family experienced something quite wonderful.

My mother passed away from cancer when I was 13. When I was 16, I was in a horrific car accident. I had broken 6 vertebrae, 4 ribs, fractured my pelvis, dislocated my hip and knee, among other things. I was in ICU, and my father was coming up from taking a break. He turned the corner and saw my mother sitting beside me, holding my hand. He says that she looked at him, smiled and nodded her head. At that moment he knew I was going to be alright. At the time I think he was in shock - he turned back around and went to the waiting area.

Years afterwards, I asked my aunt (my mother's sister) about her staying with me, holding my hand and singing a lulliby that I loved. She apparently only came a couple of times, and can't remember holding my hand. But I can still remember that feeling of someone holding my hand for hours on end. And the only lulliby she can remember was not the same one.

That was the only time my mother ever appeared to any of us. After my grandmother died, I had an odd dream where we were sitting on my bed talking. She asked me if I'd seen my mother recently. I said no, and she replied "she must be too young now." My husband woke me up and I was really sitting up in bed, talking in my sleep.

I still have no idea what my grandmother meant by that statement.

Any thoughts?