A month later, after Toni and Tessie returned to their individual homes; Tessie in San Francisco and Toni in Texas, the incident never happened again.
One morning Toni had just gotten out of a meeting with some oil specialist and a group of men that discussed a new product in the business. One man younger than the others and all of them under thirty, whose name was Bob Steinman, a careless experientialist, a brilliant technician, as well as with a daring philosophical mind approached Toni and invited her to dinner to discuss some of the products that her company might be interested in. She readily accepted and once settled at their table sipping on wine, he asked her if she had ever experienced any near death experiences. The question was sudden and Toni wasn’t comfortable sharing her years ago experience with him, but she did mention that she had heard of such things and proceeded to ask him why he asked. He became uneasy as he paused for a moment and then said, “I’m not sure. I mean I just met you today but during our meeting I kept seeing a bright white light above your head. At first I thought it was the sunlight coming in through the window, but when the receptionist closed the shades I continued to see the white light. The first thing that came to mind was when I experienced that same white light in my near death experience. I don’t know why I’m telling you this except that…I…well, never mind. Shall we order?”
“No, please don’t stop or feel uncomfortable about your experience.” Toni said with great eagerness.
“I don’t think I wish to discuss this subject any further,” he said unwillingly, “I just asked on an impulse.”
“I wish you would. You see, I haven’t been straight forward with you because I did have a near death experience over twenty years ago. In fact, during that incident and while unconscious I saw the doctors working on me and heard every word they said. I don’t believe they ever understood why I went unconscious but once my consciousness was regained and sharing with them my experience of hearing and seeing them while in my coma-like state they only looked at me as if I was strange. Never mentioning the incident again to anyone except my childhood friend I was uncomfortable about it as you are now so please....”
“I suppose you know that when someone has experienced such a thing that all those having experienced it know the other like the back of their own hand?” Bob said with excitement and leaned closer to Toni placing his hand on hers and further stated, “I felt connected to you as soon as James Weiner introduced us. However, I didn’t think any more about it until I saw the white light above your head. It shined so brilliantly that it immediately took me back to my near-death experience, but being in a meeting among my colleagues I had to dismiss it without delay. Later, when I saw you exiting the room a power overtook me and I had to approach you to invite you for this drink and dinner. It’s so unlike me to mention such an incident to anyone, yet it came out of me like a flowing water stream and before I could stop myself, it was done. Then when you seemed taken aback from it, I didn’t know how to wiggle my way out of it. Sorry I sounded so curt earlier, but I’m pleased you trusted me enough to come forward with your incident.”
“I do realize others have had near-death experiences and have told about them, yet the fact remains that they are still unexplainable. Sure, some psychiatrists rationalize why this phenomenon happens, but this is only speculation on their part for where does their knowledge come from, and who gives them the authority to identify an event of such magnitude without knowing the facts,” responded Toni. “What happened to me was real and although I could see and hear what was going on all around me I could not offer one iota of proof of what was happening to my mind or body, and I would defy anyone to prove that they know either.”
“I’m with you, Toni. I have done research and have come to the same conclusions as have you; it’s such a nebulous, cloudy field of study, it can only be rationally explained by someone who completed the journey, saw what was to be seen, and was allowed to return for whatever reason. Then, if that person had answers that might be the proof, but if someone, on the other hand merely speculated, that would be proof of nothing more than what that ‘expert’ learned in his studies; nothing of true value.”
“Wow! Is this heavy stuff, or what? Toni exclaimed. “Does oil have anything to do with these events?” she laughed heartily. Bob also saw the humor in the statement and could not contain himself and burst into laughter as well bringing their dinner dining experience back to a less heavy subject. Concluding their get-together on a much lighter note, Bob escorted Toni back to her house and wished her a good night, vowing to meet with her again before the conferences were over. Toni returned the verbal gesture and assured Bob that their togetherness would continue, for sure, for there were obviously many roads to be explored in this relationship; that feeling was shared by both.
Because of their near-death experiences Bob and Toni became so connected that they talked over the phone every night before going to sleep, e-mailed one another every morning, and often visited one another; either Toni flying to California to stay a week with Bob, or him flying to spend a week or more with her. Within that year they were seriously thinking about one of them relocating so they could share a house together and maybe write a book about their experiences or teach a seminar. Their goal was to help those with their own past experiences that weren’t as comfortable with their events as were Bob and Toni were.
Tessie called at least once a week after their Christmas happening and she too got involved in perhaps helping them with seminars. She confessed she had always wanted to help those that claimed to have experienced UFO kidnappings, and the like. It was believed in her field that those victims created these incidents in their own minds and hallucinated yet were convinced they were real. After Toni and her experience that Christmas night, she wondered if this was a true statement or not. In fact she wondered so much that she began reading everything she could on the subject. Her office looked as if she had more books in it than furniture or anything else.