One a certain day in the summer, I told my daughter that I was going to go into Carrollton to the bank. My daughter was home from college for the summer. She had been driving a little blue car, a Chevy Sprint, since High School, and the car was sitting in our driveway when I left for the bank. At the bank, as I got out of my car, an ambulance went past with its siren on. I'm not usually affected by an ambulance, but this one caught my attention and I had a bad feeling about it. As I was finishing my work with the bank teller, a man and woman came into the bank. He went to the teller to my right. I heard him tell the teller that there had been a bad accident across from Twin Cities Cement, a business on State Route 9, the road I had just traveled to come into town. I heard him say that there was a little blue car and immediately I became concerned, thinking perhaps that my daughter had decided to follow me into town. I then heard him say that he thought that the person killed was a man, driving a little blue car. I asked him if that were what he said, and he said, yes, he thought it was a man in a little blue car. I started to relax a little, but was still concerned. I got in my car and drove back toward Route 9 on 12th Street. There is a set of railroad tracks before you get to Route 9. They were very rough, and required that I slowed down to cross them. I could see the ambulance lights and police cruiser lights on the road in front of Twin Cities Cement. There was a patrolman at the intersection of 12th Street and Route 9. I didn't think to roll my window down to ask him about the accident. He waved me to the right. I turned to the right, away from the accident. I turned around in the driveway to the fairgrounds, thinking that I could take 12th Street again and go north on Route 43 to Route 171 to get back on Route 9. The patrolman waved me up 12th Street. I was driving a Ford Bronco with a manual transmission. As I got close to the railroad tracks, I pushed in the clutch to go as slow as I could over the tracks. There was no one coming toward me on the road and there was no one behind me. As my vehicle slowed, I felt the sensation of the hair on the back of my neck rise straight up. The hair on the back of my head also stood straight up, as though some form of static electricity caused my hair to rise from the top of my back to the top of my head. As I was thinking about what an odd sensation that was, I immediately sensed the presence of someone to my right, in the upper right-hand corner of my vehicle, close to the ceiling over the passenger seat. It seemed as though time slowed down. I did not look in his direction, although I knew he was there. I knew that he had dark hair and a dark beard. He seemed to be represented by a ball of energy. I felt brightness, but didn't notice if the inside of my vehicle had actually brightened or not. I felt calmness coming from him, and kindness, and I heard him say I'm okay, but he didn't speak in words. He told me this telepathically. I understood that he was alright, even though I knew that he had just died in an accident. Although he didn't seem rushed, he was gone soon after that. In the meantime, my vehicle had slowed almost to a stop, but I simply let the clutch out slowly and continued up the hill. My mind was consumed with the wonder of what had just happened, even though it didn't surprise me. I felt touched that he cared to come to me, to let me know that he was okay. Perhaps he knew that I was concerned.

We get a weekly paper from Carrollton. The following week, there was a picture of the man who was killed on the front page with a story about the accident. He looked exactly as I knew he did, with dark hair and a beard. I noted that his name was Mark and remembered that because that is my husband's name.

A few years later, I became principal at the elementary school in Carrollton. I became very good friends with the PTO president, who helped me with so many tasks. I loved her personality and caring thoughtfulness. After a couple years, I decided to take a principal's position closer to my home (the position that I now hold). I decided to go to her house to let her know about my move. After our joking and her sadness with my news, we just sat and talked. She told me something about having received a gift certificate to visit a palm reader. She told me that she doesn't believe in that kind of thing, but she had decided to go to the palm reader just for the experience. She told me in amazement that the palm reader told her things about her childhood that she had forgotten and that no one else could have known. I told her that an odd thing had happened to me once, and told her about my experience. She asked me if the man's name was Mark. I said yes. She said he was her husband's best friend. Her husband Brian was sitting in the living room at the computer while we were talking. He hadn't remarked at all until he finally said that Mark didn't have dark hair. Brian said that Mark's hair was about the color of his (which was a dark blonde). I said I didn't know any more, except that this man's hair was dark. My friend said she was sure they had a picture of him because his daughter played with their daughter and came to her birthday parties. She looked in photo albums, but could only find pictures of his little girl. Brian said he knew where there was a picture. It was on a video that had been taken when he was riding his dirt bike. Brian found the video and forwarded and rewound it until he found the place where his friend Mark was standing in the field. Mark's hair was dark. Brian said he was surprised and hadn't noticed that his friend's hair had gotten darker. Brian said that he often saw Mark's father and knew that his father missed Mark. I told Brian that, the next time he saw Mark's father, he needed to tell him that his son was okay.

I wonder if the man, Mark, came to me because he knew that I was concerned, or because somehow he knew that I would later become such good friends with his best friend's wife, and that I could relay the message that he left with me. I have never forgotten the feeling of that day and the calm presence of that man.

Was the kind of experience difficult to express in words? Uncertain      It is hard to describe how it was that I understood what he was telling me, but I knew that he simply wanted me to know that he was okay. I knew he was okay, even though I knew that he had just been killed in an accident. I wonder if he sensed my concern, and that was why he came to me, or if there were other reasons (I'll explain later).

At the time of this experience, was there an associated life threatening event?          Yes     The man was killed across the road from a familiar business that I regularly passed on my way to Carrollton. It happened on the road that I take to Carrollton. I thought at first that perhaps my daughter had followed me into town, because she also drove a little blue car such as was described by the man at the bank.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness?    As soon as I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck and head, I knew that my experience was very unusual. Throughout the experience, I was highly alert and understood exactly what was transpiring and what the man was telling me. There was no mistaking any of the interaction.

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal every day consciousness and alertness?    More consciousness and alertness than normal

If your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience was different from your normal every day consciousness and alertness, please explain:            As soon as I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck and head, I knew that my experience was very unusual. Throughout the experience, I was highly alert and understood exactly what was transpiring and what the man was telling me. There was no mistaking any of the interaction.

Did your vision differ in any way from your normal, everyday vision (in any aspect, such as clarity, field of vision, colors, brightness, depth perception degree of solidness/transparency of objects, etc.)?  Yes     When I sensed the presence of the man in my car, I did not look in his direction. I didn't feel a need to, because I knew he was there, and I knew what he looked like. It was almost as though my physical sight was not being used during the experience because I could see everything in my mind. I knew that there was energy and brightness, although I didn't see brightness or energy. I felt as though I continued to look straight ahead, but listened very intently with my mind, not my ears. I sensed his presence, sensed the brightness (although it was not extremely bright), and sensed the energy. At the same time, I could see in my mind that he was male and that he had dark hair and a beard.

Did your hearing differ in any way from your normal, everyday hearing (in any aspect, such as clarity, ability to recognize source of sound, pitch, loudness, etc.)?
            Yes     I didn't hear with my ears when he told me that he was okay. He communicated with my telepathically, and I knew that he was telling me that he was okay. It was that simple. It was as though he wanted me to know that he wasn't hurting and was feeling okay, that the accident did not harm him. It was as though he told me this so that I wouldn't worry.

Did you experience a separation of your consciousness from your body?     No

What emotions did you feel during the experience?            My emotions were very subdued. I was not frightened at all, although when the hair on the back of my neck and head stood up, I thought, whoa. Then when he was in the car close to the ceiling I found myself just listening to what he was telling me. I felt as though I gave him a very slight acknowledgement of gratitude, although it was so slight that it was almost non-existent. After the experience I felt very calm and full of wonder with what had just happened.

Did you pass into or through a tunnel or enclosure?          No      

Did you see a light?           Uncertain      The energy from his presence seemed bright, but I'm not sure that it was physically bright, or if I just sensed the energy.

Did you meet or see any other beings?           Yes     I did not know the man previously. It wasn't until a few years later that I met his best friend's wife, and at the time, of course, I didn't know that there was a connection.

Did you experience a review of past events in your life?    No       I have always had a curiosity about life after death and even multiple lives. I had already studied Elizabeth Kubler-Ross and Raymond Moody a number of years before the experience. I have studied the life and readings of Edgar Cayce. I consider myself a very spiritual person and feel a deep connection to God and Jesus Christ, although I do not feel that I pursue any kind of sensational aspect to any of my learning and do not freely share my learning with just anyone. I did learn something that I didn not previously know. I learned what it is like to actually experience an interaction with someone who had left his body. It has deepened my understanding of truth regarding our spiritual natures.

Did you observe or hear anything regarding people or events during your experience that could be verified later?          Yes     I experienced the knowledge that the man had dark hair and a beard. His picture in the newspaper looked exactly what I remembered from the week before. The only difference was that I sensed that he was tall when he was in the vehicle. When I saw his picture on the video, he didn't look like he was very tall. It could be that I felt his tallness in the vehicle because the space was cramped in my Bronco. It was just a very small utility vehicle.

Did you see or visit any beautiful or otherwise distinctive locations, levels or dimensions?           No           

Did you have any sense of altered space or time?   Yes     It seemed as though time stood still, for just a little while, as I felt the energy enter my vehicle from the back to the front. My sensation of driving my vehicle, of slowing down for the tracks, or of holding the clutch in seemed very dim during the experience. My conciousness was consumed with the experience during the time of its happening. When he was gone, time seemed to wind back up again, albeit somewhat slowly.

Did you have a sense of knowing special knowledge, universal order and/or purpose?     Yes     It was very apparent that what I was experiencing was normal in one sense of the word and that the man was transitioning in a painless and natural way. What filled me with wonder was that he chose to come to me and I still question why it was that he did that.

Did you reach a boundary or limiting physical structure? No      

Did you become aware of future events?       No           

Did you have any psychic, paranormal or other special gifts following the experience you did not have prior to the experience?     Yes     I have had other paranormal experiences. I have been tapped directly on the top of my head, twice. Once was when I was witnessing the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost when my family and I were baptized. Another time was when I was driving down the road and heard a song on the radio. Both times, the tap was rather hard and was exactly in the center of the top of my head. Both times, I felt as though someone were trying to tell me to pay attention. The baptism event was obviously important. The time that I heard the song was important, I have come to know, because the song was a rendition of Neil Young's After the Gold Rush, and I know now that the song gives important information about the second coming. It's curious to me that someone who was routinely strung out on drugs would be able to have the experience of writing that song. That seems to tell me something about each of us.

Have you shared this experience with others?         Yes     I shared it immediately when I got home with my daughter. I shared it with my husband and with my brother and mother. I have since, of course, shared it with my PTO friend, whose husband was that man's best friend. I recently shared it with a very good friend whose son was killed in an automobile accident. I also shared it with my neighbor and her son, because my neighbor's daughter died of cancer. I feel that all of the people whom I have shared the story with have been influenced positively by the telling of my experience, for they know that it is genuine and true. They have listened calmly. My neighbors and my friend seemed to feel comfort in thinking about their family member's deaths.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience?    Yes     I have been interested in near death experiences all of my adult life. I have studied the work of Raymond Moody and Elizabeth Kubler-Ross. I just finished reading the book Evidence of the Afterlife that my brother gave me as a Christmas present. That is where I got the website information that brought me to this reporting. The experience was very easy for me to accept, however it was with wonder, as I mentioned before, that the man chose to communicate with me. What a beautiful gift!

How did you view the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened:            Experience was definitely real    The experience was as real as having spoken to someone verbally and as real as having been in the car with another person. The only differences were the telepathic communication and the fact that I knew that I sensed the man's presence rather than saw it, and that his body of energy was not limited by physical laws as we are on the Earth. I was not surprised when I saw the man's picture in the paper. It validated the experience for me, but I was already very sure that the experience was real.

Were there one or several parts of the experience especially meaningful or significant to you?            The whole experience, although very short, was extremely meaningful and memorable. I can remember to this day exactly what happened and the sensation of knowing that the man had come to me. It was fulfilling for me to have heard what the man wanted to tell me, and intriguing that he told me telepathically. I know beyond any doubt that life does not end with physical death and it makes me feel responsible for somehow helping my children and grandchildren learn that they need not be afraid of death. I feel a commitment to help them understand, because I feel that it is in the understanding that they will be able to handle the experience as it takes place at any point with any family member or friend.

How do you currently view the reality of your experience:            Experience was definitely real    I felt it happen while very alert and conscious. I felt it physically and spiritually. I experienced the communication. That was as real as if someone had spoken verbally to me. The reality of every aspect of the experience has never changed for me, even after many years. I remember it fully. I remember the sensations and the way that the man communicated with me mentally. It was extremely real. There is no other explanation for it.

Have your relationships changed specifically as a result of your experience?           Yes     I have become much more spiritual as I've gotten older. The experience added to my transition from a wondering, thoughtful individual to an ever-increasingly wondering, thoughtful individual. The beauty and fulness of life and our experiences with others (especially with children and with the families that I work with) have made me somewhat emotional because of the beauty and love that encompasses us from above. The experience with the man who had passed has added to the fulness of my life. I feel that my work here is very important and that I am guided to complete it well.

Have your religious beliefs/practices changed specifically as a result of your experience?            Yes     My religious beliefs have grown deeper and have filled me with wonder and awe at the beauty of life and the power of love. I have found that spiritual laws are much stronger and more powerful than physical laws. I'm intensely interested with what our lives mean and what our responsibilities are toward others. I try to practice daily what I feel God wants me to do and I pray for guidance and strength so that I can be supporting of others. I feel the strength that comes from many who are willing to support me in my endeavors.

Following the experience, have you had any other events in your life, medications or substances which reproduced any part of the experience?         Yes     Although I hesitate to say these things, I experienced one night an individual in my home. I heard the sounds of someone in a neighboring bedroom. My husband also heard it. We searched the house but found no one. There is no doubt that there was someone there. The sounds were of floorboards creaking back and forth as though someone were holding a child and rocking it in their arms.

One morning, as I was taking my dog to the veterinarian, I saw what I believe was a UFO. I saw it first as a glint in the sky, which was very blue and cloudless. As I looked more closely, I thought it must be a plane that was very high in the air. I continued to watch it (no one was on the road in front of or in back of me). I realized, as I watched it, that it was somewhat small, but closer to the ground. It was the same in the front as it was in the back, rounded, with no wings or propellers. I realized that it was lower to the ground because it gradually sped up and quickly moved across my line of vision and over a stand of trees. It was quickly gone, unlike a jet that would have been high in the air. It was very interesting.