Ghosts Among Us - James Van Praagh [10]
My brother and sisters were standing around watching my father in his last moments of life. I approached his bed, bent down, and whispered in his ear, “It’s time for you to go home. Go toward the brilliant light that you see.”
I heard him respond to me from about two feet above my head, as if he were watching the whole thing. I knew that he would be completely aware of what was happening because he knew by then that it was time for him to go. He spoke telepathically to me in a very clear and very firm tone, and he asked me to grant his final wish. I just don’t want you kids fighting when I leave.
I promised, We won’t, Dad, and kissed him on his head. Enjoy your journey home.
When we left the room, I repeated Dad’s words to my siblings. Everyone chuckled. My brother-in-law, Jay, jokingly added, “I guess we’d better change our phone numbers then.”
Within five minutes of our last good-byes, Dad died. The doctor seemed surprised; he had given Dad at least another day or so. I turned to the doctor and told him, “He wanted to leave. His whole family was waiting for him.”
The doctor grinned, turned, and walked away.
GHOSTS ATTEND THEIR FUNERALS
After the dead leave their physical body and realize that they are no longer attached to their body, they move into the membrane between earth and the next dimension closest to earth. At this time, ghosts make up their mind whether they want to remain close to the earth as earthbound ghosts or cross into the light. During this window of opportunity, ghosts usually attend their funeral to see how they are being laid out, who shows up, the various preparations, and so on. I have heard many odd remarks by ghosts while attending their funeral. Why did they put that dress on me? Who picked those flowers for my casket? I want to be in a bronze urn, not a wooden box. Often I have heard ghosts say that they do not like having an open casket. Some male ghosts have communicated that they do not like being “made up” for their funeral. Many a ghost has caused plenty of havoc at his or her funeral in order to help the loved ones “get it right.” Then there are those who don’t give a second thought to the details of their funeral and are very surprised by all the fuss being made over them.
When my father died, my siblings and I scoured the attic for old photographs to set around the funeral parlor for his wake. He must have been quite impressed because, as I was catching up with an old school chum after the memorial service, I felt a cold breeze behind me. It was Dad. He whispered in my ear, Where did you find all those old photos of me? I don’t even remember taking them. Then he added, Thanks for putting my teeth back in. I look pretty good.
It is also common for ghosts to attend their autopsy. No longer attached to their physical body, they want to see how they died or what caused their death. If they died of a certain disease, they may want to see how the disease killed them. To us, these ideas may seem morbid, but that is because we are still mentally attached to our bodies. I think the HBO series Six Feet Under perfectly captures the life of the newly dead. The dead see their bodies as old, worn-out coats that they no longer need. I cannot tell you how many times I have had a spirit say to a loved one, Why do you go to the grave and stare at the dirt? I’m not in there.
For years my cousin Ruth, sister Lynn, Aunt Cassie, and I would talk about life after death. It seemed that the work I was doing fascinated them. We would often share memories of our dead relatives. I come from a big Irish family on my mother’s side, and I spent a lot of time in my childhood attending