Signs From Heaven… Messages From Jim

The first time I smelled the scent of buttered toast was while I was talking with Life Source, a Procurement organization who would eventually harvest my husband’s organs after we took him off life support.

With my 6 year-old son sleeping peacefully in the bed beside me in the hotel room, I answered questions about my husband’s health and habits. Did he drink? Did he smoke? Was he physically active? What illnesses did he have, such as diabetes, kidney disease… the list went on and on. Knowing in my heart that Jim would have been honored to give others a second chance at life, I was determined to share as much information with Life Source as possible.

While discussing this important information with Life Source, I was distracted by the scent of buttered toast. At first, I wondered why anyone would be fixing toast in a hotel room at 1:00 AM. Eventually, I dismissed the thought and scent as I continued on with my conversation.

Seven days later we took Jim off life-support. It was the day my heart broke and my world collapsed. Upon returning home, nothing was the same. Not only was I missing the love of my life, but I had grieving family members throughout my house. Having only a few extra beds, many relatives had to sleep on couches or mattresses on the floor. My 6 year-old, confused about all the crying people in the house, had opted to sleep in my bed and give his bed to one or two of his cousins.

The first night home, Jim came to visit me in a dream. The beautiful, heartfelt embrace we shared was vivid in my mind, upon awakening. I felt it was a blessing to have had the experience of connecting with him so soon after taking him off life-support.

Since the encounter was so vibrant and beautiful I thought I’d share it with a few, select family members at breakfast. While recalling the vision, telling the story of the beautiful embrace and how real it felt, my 6 year-old interrupted the story and said, “Mom, you woke me up when you hugged me last night!” “WOW!, I exclaimed. We were BOTH hugging Dad, at the same time!!”

Another humorous encounter with messages from Jim came when my mother, my youngest son, and I were talking in the living room. I believe I was the first one to smell Jim, so I asked, “Who smells buttered toast?” Both my mother and son answered, in a matter-of-fact way, “I do!” Within seconds of hearing their affirmation of Jim’s presence, my oldest son, then 16, yelled from the kitchen…”Hey, who just turned off the light?” All three of us in the living room called out, Dad!” From there we burst into laughter!

My oldest son had never smelled the scent of buttered toast when Jim came to visit. That day, I realized he needed to see the “visual”, thus the light being turned off! To this day, he is skeptical of his father visiting us from the other side… and that’s just fine.

As I’m writing this memory, Jim is visiting... I smell the delicious scent around me. After talking with him about why comes to visit, I’ve come to the conclusion he is just checking-up on me or in some way, feeling I need comfort. Now it is a common occurrence and I do find it comforting.

Blessings Embraced:

• Connecting with loved ones on the other side is comforting

• Being open to various ways of connecting with “spirit” strengthens my belief in the afterlife

Affirmation: I am open (yet protected) to connecting with spirit