I BELIEVE IN LIFE BEYOND LIFE

It's long been a belief of mine that our "SOUL", the essence of LIFE is actually a "VIBRATING ENERGY" - vibrating at a frequency that works with our Earthly bodies. Yet when we "DIE", I believe the "SOUL", this "ENERGY", continues on, free from the bounds of the "BODY" and goes on VIBRATING at a slower speed, becoming invisible to the human eye.

When I watched my Mom die, and then a year later my Dad die, and a few years later, my Uncle die, I tried to make sense of where she/he/they went? How could they be here one minute, full of energy and life..... and then in an instant their body became still and their ENERGY, their ESSENCE was gone. As my Dad described it, "POOF! GONE."

Naturally during my grief, I obsessed - trying to come to terms with this whole concept of "here one day and gone the next"........

Although not an original thought I'm sure, a compelling concept came to me a few years ago and I've thought about it quite a bit since - the concept of what JESUS, GOD and/or A UNIVERSAL CONSCIOUSNESS was trying to SHOW us when JESUS died. Where did HE go? When He reappeared, wasn't He showing us, PROVING to us that there is LIFE AFTER DEATH? LIFE AFTER LIFE? PROOF that there is EVERLASTING LIFE? PROOF that we don't just die and cease to exist?

You see, I believe "all of the answers" to life's complex questions are right here in front of us, if we can slow down and ponder, question and open our minds "beyond the box" to find solutions to our Earthly problems, if you know what I mean.

So, back to JESUS, who I absolutely believe existed......

I believe that by coming "back to life", JESUS was showing us - PROVING to us, that our energy, our SOUL doesn't disappear, but it continues to exist. I personally believe JESUS "humanly died" and subsequently vibrated his soul at such a high level that he was able to appear to us in his physical form once again. It looked as if he were still physically alive - we could "SEE" him - but I believe that if we look a little deeper, think outside the box, that JESUS was actually PROVING to us that "life" goes on after death in another form of ENERGY. That our SOUL continues to exist. When he stopped the highest energy of vibration, his Earthly body stopped "living", his energy left the physical body, but the ENERGY/SOUL still existed, now in another form.

Perhaps our loved ones who have passed, really CAN appear to us in the form of a butterfly or other animal. Perhaps at that moment when we feel their presence, they are truly there with us in another form. Perhaps they are vibrating their SOUL energy at such a high level that they are able to "APPEAR" to us in a form that we know about and believe exists - for example a butterfly. If you "FEEL" them in that moment or have a sense that they are communicating with you, I believe they are.

Perhaps their ENERGY can move objects as well - push a feather in your path or a penny or a dime........ Perhaps their ENERGY can mess with your mechanical or electrical items to give you a SIGN that they are there with you.

Many scholars contemplated and studied "energy" through the years. Naturally you've heard "the first law of thermodyamics" - "Energy is neither created nor destroyed".  Here is the definition I found on a Google search -

"The first law of thermodynamics, also known as Law of Conservation of Energy, states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed; energy can only be transferred or changed from one form to another. For example, turning on a light would seem to produce energy; however, it is electrical energy that is converted."

So, doesn't it make perfect sense that we continue to exist as "ENERGY" in a different form after we die?

I don't even question this concept anymore. To me, it just "IS". But it continues to astound me to think about the change from Earthly existence to simply "SOUL ENERGY". Human comprehension is limited, right?

JOAN
PS As I was proofing and making changes to this Blog post, I was also boiling eggs for deviled eggs. I was interrupted from proofing when it was time to run cold water over the eggs. As I stood at the sink, I looked out my window and saw THE BLUE HERON, who I see walking in the creek about 1-3 times a year, always when I'm thinking "spiritually". You see, I believe my sister's deceased husband says "Hello" from time to time via THE BLUE HERON, his favorite bird. Today I truly believe that he appeared to confirm the thoughts that I shared in this Blog post.......

BOOK - "A MAN CALLED OVE" by FREDRIK BACKMAN (NO SPOILERS!!)

Every so often a book comes along that makes me GIGGLE - and actually "Giggle Out Loud". (GOL??)

"A MAN CALLED OVE" by Fredrik Backman was just the right book for me to read this week. After attempting to read a non-fiction book about war (that I just couldn't finish), then the tragic event in Nice, France and then a frightening military coup attempt in Turkey last night, I was happy to get lost in a book that made me GIGGLE. (GOL)

What a misinterpreted, grumpy old man he was (Old? YIKES, he was only 59!). I LOVED the way he fell in love with his wife when he laid eyes on her. And the quirky way he showed her he was interested. I LOVE that he LOVED her so, so much. I LOVED that the author made them so believably different from each other. And I loved the other characters and how they each interacted with OVE and he with them. 

Set in Sweden, the writing style is easy and the chapters are short. (I really like when chapters are short - probably because I feel "accomplished" when I end one chapter and start the next.) I found humor in the simple drawing at the top of each chapter. (Didn't notice it until Chapter 4, but from then I looked forward to what would be next.)

It's a VERY popular book with BOOK CLUBS right now. I imagine there will be a lot of discussion when we meet next week (and again for another BOOK CLUB later this year). BOOK CLUB discussions expand my thinking, will often shift my opinion about a book or will transform my judgement to view something differently than when I first read it.

It's a simple, heartwarming book. When reading the following passages, tell me you don't GOL just a little (come on, at least a little smile?). Feels good to GOL, doesn't it?

Page 57

"The first time the doorbell goes he assumes he's made a mistake and ignores the sound for that very reason. The second time he realizes that there's actually someone ringing the bell, and he ignores it for that very reason."

Page 79

"And so it turned out that Ove became a night cleaner instead. And if this hadn't happened, he would never have come off his shift that morning and caught sight of her. With those red shoes and the gold brooch and all her burnished brown hair. And that laughter of hers, which, for the rest of his life, would make him feel as if someone was running around barefoot on the inside of his breast."

Page 128

"He had never been spontaneous before in his life. But when he saw her it was as if something malfunctioned."

Page 140

"Ove always had a clear travel strategy. His wife, on the other hand, always came up with insanities like "going by a sense of feel" and "taking it easy." As if that was a way for an adult person to get anywhere in life. And then she always remembered that she had to make a call or had forgotten some scarf or other. Or she didn't know which coat to pack at the last moment. Or something else. She always forgot the thermos of coffee on the draining board, which was actually the only important thing. There were four coats in those damned bags but no coffee....."

JOAN

MY BUTTERFLY STORY

Before my MOM died (1999) we knew she was terminal. Thankfully we had 2.5 years to prepare (but can one ever be prepared when the time comes?). 

Nine months before she died, MOM and I went to France together. We had always planned to travel together after my DAD died, who with his multiple health problems, we felt certain would go first. We had a beautiful time in France and created memories that will last my lifetime.

Shortly before we left for France, I had to put my first dog, NIKKI to sleep (almost 13). It broke my heart. She and I had had such a deep, loving connection. She taught me about communicating on a higher level, since we had 2 different Earth Languages. She also taught be about unconditional love - an "Introductory Course" that I've chosen to repeat over and over again...... now with my 7th German Shepherd Dog. My deep love for NIKKI made it terribly difficult to say goodbye. Looking back on it, I believe it was part of the "Grand Plan" to help me to prepare for saying goodbye to MOM - proving to me that life does go on after we lose a loved one.........  

FIVE MONTHS after NIKKI died, my second dog, PEPPER died suddenly from a blood cancer. FIVE MONTHS later, my MOM died. FIVE MONTHS later, my DAD was diagnosed with terminal cancer and 8 months later he passed. An emotionally charged couple of years.

PEPPER was recovering from surgery to stop some internal bleeding from earlier that month. The vet told me that she was on "borrowed time" - weeks to months. The night that she died, I was sitting on the floor in the 2nd bedroom doing some filing. PEPPER walked past the door to the room, looked in at me and walked away as I heard her say "IT'S TIME". PEPPER literally communicated that to me. I raced down the stairs to her as she was then swaying and stumbling, picked her up (70 pounds) and carried her down outdoor steps to the car (had to be "super-human strength"). She died on the way to the vet hospital.

Ok, that is all background info for my BUTTERFLY STORY........

Before my MOM died she said she would communicate with me from "the other side" but since she didn't know how it was going to work, I was to PAY ATTENTION. 

MOM died in June 1999 and I had 2 dogs at the time - CINDER and CURRY. CURRY was just a puppy - only a few weeks before she died, MOM came up with the name. The Mommy's name was SPICE so I needed a "Spice" name........ 

In early July, my 2 sisters and I were returning to Florida to help my DAD go through MOM's things. Naturally my senses and emotions were heightened. I was outside with the dogs before leaving for the airport when I saw a large, BLACK BUTTERFLY flying around them. And it kept flying and circling each dog - circling one dog and then the other. I thought about how strange it was for a butterfly to hang around for that long. That's all I was thinking at the moment, but it DID catch and hold my attention.  

On my way to the airport I broke down in tears, because it "came to me" that the BUTTERFLY was my mom's way of telling me to think of the dogs and also think of her and put two and two together - it was her way of telling me that she was united with my 2 dogs, NIKKI and PEPPER. They were all together and all was ok. What a validation of life after death! I was certain of the message and comforted.  

I do believe that our "SPIRIT" has great powers and perhaps even more so after this lifetime when we reconnect with the universal consciousness and gain greater understanding of our powers. I firmly believe that if we as humans just pay attention, listen and remain open to messages from those who have passed, they will know when we need something and will figure out a way to communicate with us. Validation that they are still with us on a higher level.

JOAN