Huling Paalam

A not-so-close encounter happened exactly during the time when my paternal grandfather died. My grandfather was 96 when he died. It was the year 1996. He was bed-ridden and refused to eat for 10 days prior to his death. It seemed that his spirit wanted to move on already but his body didn’t. Anyway, he died in his sleep around dawn. When my Dad came up to his room in the morning with breakfast, he discovered that my grandfather’s body was cold, stiff and purple already. He didn’t die of any ailment; he just died of old age.

A day before my Grandpa died, my sister went vacationing at a beach resort in La Union. Early in the morning, about 4 am, they were disturbed by persistent knocking at their beach hut. Thinking how crazy it was for anyone to disturb their sleep at an unholy hour, they ignored it thinking the person would just give up and go away. But they were wrong. The knocking didn’t stop until they finally opened the door only to find no one.

Also at dawn, my eldest sister who lived in another place, woke up thinking she heard someone outside knocking. She peeked out the window but nobody was there. That was the time my Grandpa was dying. His spirit went roaming before he went. He was bidding them goodbye. As for me, I was the last one he saw the day before. After he saw me, he called out for my brother.

After he died, Dad had his room repainted because on the wall where his head would rest ever single day while he sat on his bed, was the shape of his head.

Have you had this experience? Or heard a similar story? Tell me about it.

Messages From The Spirit Guides - The Intruders

The same thing would repeat itself in 2007. Through the summer, my parents would often sleep with their windows open, especially when the temperatures rose. This time, with all of us grown and living separately, they had the house to themselves.

Although the windows had no protective bars, their room was upstairs so they didn’t have second thoughts about the safety of leaving the windows open at night.

It is a known fact that thieves and robbers would stroll at night on escapade especially on hot evenings, more often than on cold rainy nights. And this was one of those nights.

At about 4 am, a voice told my Dad to wake up. When he opened his eyes, he was alarmed to see 3 figures on the roof outside their window. The men were slowly and silently creeping up, one man clutching the opened window and almost setting his foot on the window sill. Immediately he stood up and shouted loudly at them. My Mom woke up instantly. The three men suddenly leaped from the roof and went flying down the street. They all started running down the road and disappeared into the night. That was about a 15 foot leap! It was amazing they didn’t break their tendons. It seems they have developed the expertise of high jump being who they are and doing what they do.

It was a frightening experience since we never would have guessed what tragedy might have taken place that night, had it been for that voice. It sends up a warm feeling inside knowing that someone’s looking out there for us. 

Messages From The Spirit Guides - The Candle

This one didn’t happen to me. It was my Dad’s experience. It was the early 80’s when the electric company’s service wasn’t so good that ever so often, the city would experience blackouts mostly lasting through the night. It was one of those familiar days. All 7 of us would spend the evening seated together around the table playing scrabble by candle light, munching on fritters that my mom used to make served in papers rolled up like ice cream cones.

That specific evening, my sister and I didn’t want to wrap up the night yet. We chatted through nightfall until we fell asleep. I used to share a room with her on the second floor. My parents’ bedroom was on the first floor. My siblings stayed in the other 2 rooms upstairs.

By 2 am, we were sound asleep when there was a scuffle in our room. I was shocked to see my Dad fighting fire with a smoking blanket in hand. Suddenly I remembered, we left our candle burning! The candle was sitting on a round stool that was beside the bed near my sister’s pillow. The stool was on fire! The stool caught fire easily since it was wooden. My Dad came to our rescue just in time before the flame spread.

My dad sleeps like a log to such extent that his heavy snoring, heard upstairs doesn’t wake him up a bit. He said a voice woke him up and told him to check our room.

To this day that wooden stool with its burned top is a reminder of that incredible night. 

Messages From Spirit Guides - Road Accident

One day in January 2004, when I was checking out what was on TV, I got hooked on CNN where Larry King was interviewing a famous psychic lady. I think her name was Sylvia Brown. She was taking calls from all over. People were asking about their dead friends and relatives’ present state in the spiritual realm. Then she mentioned that every one of us have spirit guides. I instantly believed her. She even said they had names.

Well, although they are spirits and they guide us, I would rather call them Angels. One thing that convinced me that Angels do exist was in 1995. My sister, together with her toddler, was babysitting for my other sister whose little girl was just 3 years old then. While they were playing, the 2 little girls suddenly looked up grinning and started clapping their hands. In wonder, my sister asked what they were looking at and as you guessed, she described what looked like an angel dancing –he was tall, beautiful, had long hair and was in blue clothes. But my sister couldn’t see anyone there. Somebody once told me that only little kids can see them, and I mean little, not older kids.

Anyway, this story revolves around what I think are experiences involving what I want to call “angels”.

It was a bright day in February 1990 when I and my girlfriends were riding in a jeepney heading for the city’s main business district.

A Jeepney is one form of the public utility vehicle used in the Philippines. The driver sits in front with one or two passengers alongside him. At the back would be 2 long benches facing each other where about 16 to 20 passengers can be accommodated. It is an improved version of the military jeeps used by American servicemen when they were fighting for the war in the 1940’s. Improved, in the sense that the benches are longer, most have karaoke, small TV, great upholstery, a door, windows, air conditioning and some even have a small disco light.

I was seated at the very tail on one side just near the door. We just finished our class. I was in my first year in the university. We were immersed in our usual chat about school. The jeep was not packed. The route was just so familiar that I did not care to notice. We passed the usual school supplies stores, convenience stores, restaurants, banks, gasoline station and hardware stores on both sides.

Then it happened so fast. I suddenly realized that something was urging me to clutch on to the door. But I brushed the feeling aside, thinking it was strange and unnecessary. I just looked toward the door and went on chatting. I never noticed if the vehicle we were in was going too fast, which I now think it was. A split second later came a loud crashing sound. Everybody was thrown about so badly. I hit my head on side of the jeep. I had to get an x-ray. My head hurt for 3 days and so did the rest of my body. When the jeep crashed, the people in my side of the bench came crashing on me, which made my head hit all the more strongly. I was lucky that my head was intact although I suffered a few blue marks from the tell tale accident. Instantly, I was overwhelmed by regret for not listening to that voice. The last thing I could do was thank God for my skull. The impact was strong, but so is my skull. Some people ended up with stitches on their head. We were most likely over speeding when the vehicle in front suddenly came to a complete halt. I don’t know for what reason it did. Our jeepney driver was taken by surprise that it was too late for him to hit the brakes. The jeep’s nose and headlights were flattened and deformed. It started traffic.