She knew......

It was in the early morning hours of March 1, 2013, somewhere around 1:30 a.m. She suddenly woke from a deep sleep to the moon coming through the small slit in her bedroom window curtains like a gentle but powerful spotlight across her body. Her heart began to flutter. Not really flutter but do that thing it does when something "bad" has happened to someone. It doesn't last long and it's hard to explain but she knows it when it's "that" feeling. There's no other feeling like that one. And it had happened before and she knew why. Oh God, not again.....She clutched her chest and tears began to flow. Her breathing hesitated. Then she tried to take a deep breath and make it go away but it wouldn't. The flutter became deeper, more pronounced. No pain, well, not for her at least. Within about a minute, it stopped and she peacefully fell back to sleep.

About 8:30 a.m. that Saturday morning, as she was finishing breakfast and about to curl up on the sofa with her german shepherd and relax with the beautiful feeling of not having anything planned for the day, the phone rang. It was her dad. She instantly knew something was wrong. Her dad never calls this early on a weekend. Feeling the dread, she answered the phone.  His voice was quivering:

Mom wanted to call you but she's too upset.
Dad, what's wrong? Is Mom ok?
Mom is fine. Sweetie, Sally called........... Stevie died.

She was in complete disbelief.
Stevie? How? He was only 53.
Wait, what? There's no way. How? What happened? When? This can't be true. I don't understand.
He was active and in great health. He always played basketball.
What about the boys?

His 11-year old son, his name sake, had called 911 as soon as he found him, lying in bed. Even did CPR. But, it was too late.  He had a massive heart attack and died instantly.

In between the sheer disbelief, bouts of uncontrollable sobbing and flashbacks in her mind to growing up together, it then hit her and she frantically asked her dad:

Dad, when did this happen??!
Sally just called about an hour ago.
No, Dad, what time did Stevie die? 
She said around 1:30 this morning. 

1:30 this morning.
Her tears flowed like a raging river down her face but a warmth came over her and a smile came out behind the tears as she explained to her dad what had woke her this morning.  It was Stevie. She knew he died as soon as he took his last breath because she FELT his last breath. The exact moment that he was leaving his human body and transforming, his energy....his spirit.... connected with hers. She felt him as he died. Growing up they were very close and shared such a special connection but over the last 10 years or so they had lost touch.  It had always made her quite melancholy to think of it but their bond was never broken and this was proof.  He knew she was an open channel and had found a way to get to her. This was the best gift he could have ever given her.

1:30 this morning.
The man she always referred to as her cousin but they weren't even blood related.
The man who was always there for her growing up - at every family event.
The man who acted and felt like he was more family than most of her blood family.
He had died.
But at 1:30 that morning, he used that undeniable unspoken connection they had always shared and he told her goodbye in a way that she would never forget and always treasure.

It's not often that she sees it. In fact, it's only been about three or four times since that night that she's seen it. But when she sees it, there is no doubt it's him. The moon that night was like no other and she knows why - it was Stevie's moon.

It was in the early morning hours of March 1, 2013, somewhere around 1:30 a.m. She suddenly woke from a deep sleep to the moon coming through the small slit in her bedroom window curtains like a gentle but powerful spotlight across her body. Her heart began to flutter. Not really flutter but do that thing it does when something "bad" has happened to someone.

She knew......