Waking up to the sound of Dad’s gentle snoring, I vowed that I would never again have anything to do with that guy. I should have listened to my gut feeling after the prom.
Aiden
I couldn’t stand by and watch her being hurt again. Why couldn’t she see the depth of blackness in his heart? Ella shines with light, while he is surrounded by a muddy aura and a cold darkness. I’m not supposed to interfere, humans have their own life path and lessons to learn. But watching his arm angrily swing back, about to strike her…I couldn’t help it. Grabbing his arm, I twisted it, he fell back, allowing Ella to escape.
Taylor swore at Ella as she ran off. He was about to chase after her again so I planted my foot on his chest and held him there. He was terrified. Tears began to run down his face and his anger turned to fear, wondering why he couldn’t get up. Why there was a force crushing down on his chest. He lay still, almost paralysed, curled into a foetal position for a long time. Then we both heard voices coming towards us, it was the police. I let him go, but he just lay there blubbering like a baby.
“Are you Taylor?” they asked. He ran to them, sobbing and clinging onto the policeman, refusing to let go, he was pathetic. The police arrested him for assault and took him to the police station. He babbled on about being held down, all the way there. The police tested him for drugs and asked for a psychiatric evaluation at the hospital. That will teach him to hurt Ella!
Remember that I told you I’m not supposed to interfere in human life? Once is forgiven, twice is frowned upon. I was summoned to meet with Archangel Raguel, he is the overseer of all angels.
Raguel took me to a beautiful crystal forest. As we walked, he explained that he could understand my desire to protect Ella, but it is against Divine order to physically interfere with and hurt any human…even those with black souls and evil intentions.
I tried to argue, “But what is the good of us…I can’t stand by and watch the evil ones attack the innocents.”
Raguel took my hands and looked into my tormented face. I could feel his powerful loving energy piecing into my very core. “Aiden, this is not your purpose, you are there to guide departed souls to the light and ease their journey into Heaven.”
We walked a little further. I stopped, shocked by what I saw. In front of me were hundreds of angels, frozen in ice.
“You have been warned Aiden, if you interfere again you will be placed here, frozen and unable to help anyone.” His eyes penetrated my very being.
I was speechless. How could an Archangel be so cruel? “Are they frozen forever?” I asked, fearing the answer.
“No,” Raguel replied, “only for a short time to think about their folly, but if they try to interfere again, they freeze immediately. These are the ones who continued to intrude into human life, they used all their chances and will remain here forever.”
“Now return to the humans you care for, remember your duty and carry it out in a harmonious way. No more violence, you can warn them if they are open to your messages, but you are not to act against any human. Do you understand, Aiden?” his power was overwhelming.
I lowered my eyes, “I understand.”
He embraced me and sent me flying back to Earth.
The conflict this caused me was immense, it was like a hundred voices arguing in my thoughts. If I tried to help again…I would immediately be frozen and could be kept away from Ella for quite some time. The question I continued to ask myself was, ‘Can I do this, can I stand by and watch her being hurt?’
Ella
It’s been a fortnight since Taylor attacked me on the beach. I know it’s silly and rather pathetic, but I feel really sad. In fact I feel absolutely miserable. How could everything have turned so quickly? In some ways I really miss him, but I’m scared of him as well. Earlier tonight he send me two messages. He sounded so sad and lost, I almost replied. I almost gave in. But this time I listened to my gut feeling and did nothing.
Lying in bed, feeling really alone and lost, my mind was swirling…going through the whole Taylor scenario in my head…and then I sensed something. It was really strange, I felt like someone was in my room, but I couldn’t see anyone. I wondered if Tommy was visiting me. Jack says that Tommy visits him all the time. I closed my eyes, willing myself to see Tommy. It was then that a smell filled my room. Mom must have planted roses outside my bedroom window. The fragrance was sweet and beautiful as it drifted in through my opened window.
That night I dreamed that Tommy had visited and told me that he is happy and watches over all of us. In my dream we talked about the fun times we had camping, getting up to all sorts of mischief, making tree-houses, sliding down giant sand hills and surfing down the rapids in the creek. He told me he is in Heaven with Grandpa, Grandma and our dog Tyson. And then he was gone, he just disappeared.
Thinking about my dream the next morning, I couldn’t believe how real it felt. I jumped out of bed and went outside to look at the roses. There was nothing in the garden bed outside my window.
At breakfast I asked, “Mom, do you have any rose bushes in the yard?” Mom replied that she didn’t have time for flowers. Maybe the smell was part of my dream….
Then Jack called out, “Tommy smells like flowers.” Mom and I stood very still, looking at each other. She held my hands tightly as a tear silently trickled down her cheek. She half smiled and walked outside.
“Jack, don’t say things like that, you know it upsets Mom,” I chastised.
“But it’s the truth Ella!” his voice had an edge of desperation to it. “Why doesn’t anyone ever believe me?” and he ran off to his bedroom, slamming his door.
I quietly entered his room, lay on the bed with him and gave him a big sister cuddle. Poor little guy was sobbing his heart out. “It’s okay Jack, I’m sure Tommy does visit you.”
“He does Ella, he visits all of us,” he said in a soft and earnest voice. I wiped away his tears and offered to take him out for an ice-cream. That put a smile on his cute little face.
Mom (Diana – Ella’s Mom)
This week I didn’t have to drag Ella to Explore the Beyond, she was actually quite excited about going because she was bringing her friends Emma and Connor along.
Ella had told them about her experience with Shelby…how she had described her grandparents and they were fascinated.
Connor lost his Dad in a car accident when he was three and was really interested in the afterlife. When Tommy died he wanted Ella to have a séance with him to see if they could contact Tommy through a ouija board. Ella didn’t really want to do this, but she did for Connor’s sake. Nothing happened, which I was really happy about. After that night, Connor gave up trying to contact his Dad.
Emma was also excited and wanted to join in. Her parents don’t believe in God or the afterlife, she has never been to Church or Sunday School. “You two are NOT leaving me out of this, I’m coming too,” she demanded. “I’m really interested, I have no idea what to believe in.”
When I phoned Shelby, she was happy to take on another two teenagers. “They are coming for a reason, Dianna, their angels are guiding them towards me.” When I told her about Connor’s Dad and how he tried to contact him with a ouija board, she was horrified. “Oh no, that is so dangerous, he is inviting spirits in and not all spirits are good, I’ll talk to him about it when he comes.”
We started off with a meditation where we had to put our problems in a bucket and sent them to the sky, asking the universe to take our worries away. At first I could see that Connor felt uncomfortable…he was the only male attending the class. But after a while he settled in and really enjoyed the session. Shelby asked if he would like a spiritual healing. He looked at Ella and raised his eyebrows, not knowing what to say. Sensing his unease, Shelby offered for Ella to come along for one as well. I saw the tension disappear from his shoulders, he was more than happy to have a healing, as long as Ella was there with him. Shelby arranged for both of them to visit her the next day after lunch.
They walked out smiling. “Well Ella this WILL be interesting,” whispered Conner. I felt a little sorry for Emma, but Shelby obviously didn’t feel that she needed spiritual assistance.
As we were about to drive off, Shelby ran out to the car. “This won’t take long, can I talk to you Ella?” And she motioned to Ella to join her outside the car.
“I wasn’t going to say anything, but I feel totally compelled to tell you this,” she sounded almost anxious. Shelby moved closer and took Ella’s hands and looked straight into her eyes. “You had the most beautiful angel standing beside you all night. I have never seen one so bright and radiant. Don’t be afraid Ella, he is your guardian angel. You are one lucky girl. I’ll see you and Connor tomorrow, goodnight Ella.” And with that she turned and casually walked back inside.
Ella just stood there…perfectly still and then she smiled and got back into the car. I had heard the whole conversation, but her friends hadn’t, they were too busy talking about how wonderful the night had been.
“What did Shelby say to you Ella?” asked Emma.
For some reason Ella didn’t tell her friends. “Oh, nothing really, she is just so glad that my two wonderful friends are coming along on this journey with me.”
Watching them in the rear mirror, they all smiled and hugged each other. I drove off and turned on the radio. Robbie William’s song Angel was playing. Ella obviously hadn’t told her friends about Stairway to Heaven playing the previous week and they didn’t really notice the song. Ella and I did though. She winked at me and we both burst into laughter. The other two looked at us like we were going mad and then they joined in laughing as well.
Connor
Today I went with Ella for a spiritual healing session with Shelby. Ella and I both felt a little anxious on the way there. My hands were sweaty and I felt really nervous going into her healing room. There were crystals and candles everywhere and Shelby was dressed in a beautiful white gown with no shoes on. She welcomed me with a hug and told me to relax, “Don’t worry Connor, everything is going to be fine.”
I got up onto what looked like a massage table, but it was covered in white velvet. Shelby put on some soft background music and told me to take a few deep breaths. Then she ran her hands over my body, not touching, but I could feel where they were. The heat radiating from her hands was amazing. And then she stopped over my heart. Shelby’s eyes were open, but she wasn’t looking at me. They seemed to turn the lightest and brightest blue possible. It was almost as if her eyeballs were bulging outwards.
“Connor, your heart needs healing. Your aura is full of beautiful pastel colours, lots of pink and this shows that you are a loving person, but you have dense white above your heart.” I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing.
Then she continued, “Your Dad is here, Connor, he has a cheeky grin and can I say he is very handsome. Dark curly hair, quite tall about 6 foot 3 and he has a mole on his left cheek.” She was describing my Dad. Up until she talked about his facial mole, I was a bit sceptical.
“He is telling me that he was sad to go and leave you, you were so young. He wants you to remember the tiger toy he gave you just before he left. He says he got it for you because that was his nickname for you, Tiger.” I gulped. How could Shelby know that? Not even my friends knew about my old nickname. After Dad died, I wouldn’t let anyone call me Tiger. I was angry at Dad for leaving me and I threw my toy tiger in the rubbish bin. My thoughts and senses were going crazy. Tears started to roll down my cheeks.
“It is okay Connor, let your grief come out, don’t bottle it up,” she whispered, bending over me, her eyes piercing into mine.
“Your Dad’s name was Dean, but everyone called him Dino. He was a funny man, always playing practical jokes on his friends and family. He is telling me about the time he took you camping in the bush, just you and him. You caught your first fish and you were so excited, but you couldn’t kill it so you let it go. He was so proud of you, Connor.”
I could remember that! I hadn’t thought about that since I was a little kid. How could she know that?
“He is telling me that he has visited you every night since he passed. He sits on the chair next to your bed and talks to you about what it takes to be a man of integrity. A man who is honest, faithful and kind.”
My Dad visits me…I smiled through the river of tears.
Shelby kept her hands over my heart as she continued. “He is also concerned about you trying to contact the spirit world. He says to be careful, it is not safe, you could attract the dark spirits.”
I nodded, never again would I use a ouija board. “Don’t worry Dad, I won’t,” I said out loud.
“Connor, your Dad is really insistent that I tell you to be aware of dark humans as well. I think he is saying the name, Tyler, Taylor…. Do you understand what he is saying?” she asked.
I nodded, he was warning me about Taylor.
“Your Dad is going now, he just wants you to know that he loves you with all his heart and he never would have chosen to leave you. He is with you always Connor. He is so incredibly proud of the man you are becoming. He wants me to tell you…bye Tiger.”
I couldn’t speak. The words stuck in my throat, I told Dad through my thoughts that I love him too and I miss him. But knowing he is still with me…means everything.
Shelby told me that Dad had gone and that she’d pulled out much of the sadness from my heart. “Connor, how does your chest feel?” she asked.
I told her that it felt really light, it was like a lump had been removed. She smiled and thanked the angels for helping her.
Shelby helped me to sit up and gave me a box of tissues. “Let it all come out Connor, you are healing as I watch you. Your aura has turned to a bright emerald green and the white over your heart has turned to a soft pink.”
I took a deep breath, I could feel the air go all the way to my stomach. Then I stood, “How can I ever thank you Shelby, knowing that Dad visits me has changed everything,” I said to her as she gave me a hug.
She led me out to where Ella was waiting. Ella could see that I had been crying. Her face had concern written all over it, Ella had never seen me cry, ever! In fact, I haven’t cried since Dad died. “Are you okay Connor?” she asked as she took me into her arms.
“I’m fine, Ella, actually I feel incredible,” I assured her. Then I sat down to process what had just happened, while it was Ella’s turn.
Shelby may have been able to find out that my father had died when I was a toddler. But how could she know all the personal details about him? Her words played over and over in my mind. It is impossible that she could know about Dad calling me Tiger and about my first fishing experience. There is no way that Shelby got that information from my friends. Hell, I could only just remember him myself. I felt tired, but totally elated and I couldn’t stop smiling.
Ella
I walked into Shelby’s healing room feeling quite concerned. Connor never cried, he didn’t even cry when he fell out of a tree and broke his arm when he was 8.
“Don’t worry Ella, Connor is fine,” Shelby reassured me.
The room was beautiful, but very warm. Shelby explained that she was going to use Reiki to heal any emotional or physical blockages. I had never heard of Reiki, so I didn’t know what to expect. She moved her hands over my body. They radiated heat. She stopped over my lungs. “You have asthma, Ella.” She wasn’t asking a question, she just knew.
“You are still carrying grief from losing your brother, Tommy,” she said, holding her hands just above my chest. Then using her hands, she started to pull away from my chest towards the ceiling.
“Ella, Tommy is here.” I held my breath and my body went rigid.
“Relax Ella, it is okay, Tommy visits you and your family all the time. He is telling me that Jack is the only one who can see and hear him.”
“But Shelby, how do I know that this is true?” I asked with a tear running down my cheek. Shelby just looked ahead, not talking to
me for a moment.
“Ella, Tommy wants to show you a sign that you might recognize.” And Shelby stood totally still, staring down at me. Suddenly the room smelt of roses.
Shelby and I smiled as we looked into each other’s eyes.
“He is telling me that he loves his little sister forever and he is really glad you kept his coin collection, which was really special to him. He is saying that you helped him to have a peaceful and love-filled passing. He is worried about your Dad, he says that he is holding everything in and has sadness all around him. He wants you to help your Dad to understand that he is happy and free of pain…that life doesn’t end at the death of the body.”
Shelby looked down at me and asked if I understood what he was saying. I nodded, too choked up to talk.
“He is telling me that your guardian angel is looking after you. He is really insistent that you need to listen to your sixth sense. And he says to keep away from a boy. He is agitated. He is yelling at me to tell you he is dangerous.”
Shelby stopped and focused her eyes on the wall. “Ella, I think he is saying the name, Taylor. That is the second warning today about this boy. Do you know who he is?” she asked. I nodded again.
“He also said that he wants candles on his next birthday cake, does that make any sense, Ella?” I thought back to Jack’s tantrum over the cake. “He is laughing Ella, and he says he wouldn’t mind a present as well,” Shelby shrugged her shoulders and smiled.
“Jack, you haven’t changed!” I blurted out and started laughing.
“He is saying goodbye and wants to remind you to be careful and help Dad. And one more thing…don’t forget the present, and make it a good one,” relayed Shelby.
The rose smell disappeared from the room, I knew he had left. Shelby looked down at me, “He is so gorgeous Ella, what a smile he has.”