It is Saturday morning on the 3rd of May 2014, around 05:00, daylight saving time.

Through the caravans small open window I notice dusk is falling in and am enjoying God's creation: the whistling thrush that starts off the birds' daily whistling concert.

Suddenly something or someone blows harshly into my left ear. A strong loudly audible and tactile movement of air lasting some 2 to three seconds which I can still feel after five to ten minutes!

I immediately thought of my wife wanting to play a trick on me!

In my small room, of two by two meters [just over two yards square] a quick check revealed nothing that could have been the cause of this air movement. A person, bellows, leaking balloon, ball,...

I was absolutely not shaken and felt intensely peaceful, so... I was in good company!

Having been confronted with lack of understanding, unbelief, [people] not prepared to listen... I wasn't prepared to share this which physically happened with my wife or anyone else. 

I memorize the time this happened and patiently wait.

If what happened has any meaning everything will be revealed without having to search for it.

Some days later we received an obituary from a niece (93 years, died May 3rd 2014) in the academic hospital at Bruges.

Now it hits me. A long time ago when visiting [her] together with my mother (who died January 17th 1993) I discovered her very solid faith and dared to make a deal with her: "Whichever of us dies first is to give a small careful sign that they are still around, as an ultimate proof that absolute disappearance and endings do not exist."

She immediately answered as to what the sign would be.

Up to three times she repeated that she would blow out a candle (in this case a fictitious one). There was no candle, but the blowing sure was!

And that was the promise which she kept. She neither forgot nor was she ever reminded of it!

Reservations:

The objective truth of what happened is above all suspicion to me. I don't doubt it for a moment. I was fully awake and clear as a bell.

My mother, who accompanied me [to my niece] died in 1993, this happened 21 years ago. Since that last meeting (maybe twenty-five years ago) I can't remember having ever spoken to her again!

How could she have known where I was at that moment? I have only owned this caravan for ten years!

How did she get to where I was, on my left side, the exit side. On my right there is a panel.

The distance, as the crow flies, is about 10 Km. (6.2mi.)

Even with a map, I'd be hard to find in this sort of maze-like camping ground.

I never forgot our promise, but I never thought of it either.

What should we call this moving, air-displacing, sound-making... being?

A non material being, spirit, soul,.. capable of moving matter (air), making a blowing sound and making her actions felt physically.

Agnostics deny, but I can not deny these facts I brought upon myself.

Should I have asked to move the two Galileo satellites back into their proper orbits?

Maybe their physical powers are unlimited, "it" may be possible, but not allowed?

Think of miraculous healings, faith that would move mountains!

Or maybe they are angels accompanying her to the proper place, I don't "know".

Het is zaterdagmorgen 3 mei 2014 rond 5 uur zomeruur.

Door het open venstertje van de caravan bemerk ik de beginnende schemering en geniet van Gods schepping: de fluitende lijster die het dagelijks vogelfluitconcert in gang zet.

Plots blaast er iets of iemand fel in mijn linkeroor. Een stevige 2 3 seconden durende luidruchtige hoorbare en voelbare luchtverplaatsing, na 5 10 minuten nog voelbaar!

Onmiddellijk dacht ik aan mijn vrouw die mij een poets wilde bakken!

In mijn kamertje 2 X 2 meter was er na een vlugge controle niets aanwezig dat de oorzaak kon zijn van deze luchtverplaatsing. Een persoon, blaasbalg, leeglopende ballon, bal, ...

Ik was absoluut niet geschrokken en voelde mij intens vredig, dus... ik was in goed gezelschap!

Vroeger steeds geconfronteerd met onbegrip, ongeloof, geen luisterbereidheid....was ik niet van plan het fysiek gebeurde met mijn eega of wie dan ook nog te delen.

Ik onthoud het tijdstip van het gebeuren en wacht rustig af.

Alles komt uit zonder zoeken, indien het gebeurde enige betekenis heeft.

Enkele dagen later ontvingen we een overlijdensbericht van een nicht (93jaar +3 mei 2014) in het A.Z. Brugge...

Nu valt het mij te binnen. Bij een lang geleden bezoek samen met mijn moeder (+17 januari 1993) ontdekte ik haar zeer diep geloof en dan durf ik wel een afspraak maken:" Wie het eerste sterft geeft een klein voorzichtig tekentje van het nog aanwezig zijn, voor het ultieme bewijs dat het absolute verdwijnen en einde niet bestaat."

Ze gaf me onmiddellijk het antwoord van wat het teken zou zijn.

Tot driemaal toe herhaalde ze ons dat ze een kaars ( hier wel een fictieve) zou uitblazen. De kaars was er niet, maar het geblaas was er wel!

En dat was dan de afspraak, welke ze nagekomen is. Ze was het niet vergeten of er aan herinnerd!

Bedenkingen:

De feitelijke werkelijkheid van het gebeuren staat voor mij buiten kijf. Daar twijfel ik geen ogenblik aan.  Ik was klaar wakker, bloednuchter.

Mijn moeder, die me vergezelde is gestorven in 1993, dit is reeds 21 jaar geleden. Sinds die laatste ontmoeting (misschien 25 jaar) kan ik mij niet meer herinneren dat ik haar nog heb gesproken!

Op welke wijze verplaatst ze zich tot bij mij, aan mijn linkerkant, de uitstapkant, de rechterkant is een paneel.

Afstand in vogelvlucht ongeveer 10 km.

Zelfs met een grondplan ben ik in dit soort doolhofachtige camping moeilijk te vinden.

Onze afspraak was ik niet vergeten, maar ik dacht er niet meer aan.

Een immaterieel wezen, geest, ziel,... dat in staat is materie (lucht) te verplaatsen, blazend geluid te maken en haar actie fysiek voelbaar maakt.

Hoe kunnen we dit bewegende, luchtverplaatsende, klankvoortbrengende... wezen benoemen?

Agnostici ontkennen, doch ik kan deze zelf uitgelokte feiten niet ontkennen.

Had ik misschien kunnen vragen om de twee Galileo-satellieten terug in hun juiste baan te blazen?

Misschien zijn hun fysieke krachten onbeperkt, maar kan "het" wel, maar mag "het" niet?

Denk aan miraculeuze genezingen, geloof dat bergen zou verzetten!

Of zijn het engelen die haar naar de juiste plaats begeleiden, dat "weet" ik niet.

At the time of your experience was there an associated life-threatening event?   No 

Was the experience difficult to express in words?  No    

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness?            At no time

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness?      Normal consciousness and alertness  

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience.   Normal.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience.   Normal.

Did you see or hear any earthly events that were occurring during a time that your consciousness / awareness was apart from your physical / earthly body?   No, Not Applicable.

What emotions did you feel during the experience?   Rest and peaceful.

Did you pass into or through a tunnel?   No  

Did you see an unearthly light?   No  

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice?   I encountered a definite being, or a voice clearly of mystical or unearthly origin
There was something present, but I did not yet know who or what!

Did you encounter or become aware of any beings who previously lived on earth who are described by name in religions (for example: Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha, etc.)?   No  

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings?   No  

Did you become aware of past events in your life during your experience?   No  

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world?   No

Did time seem to speed up or slow down?   No

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything?   No

Did you reach a boundary or limiting physical structure?   No

Did you come to a border or point of no return?   No

Did scenes from the future come to you?  No 

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness suggesting that there either is (or is not) continued existence after earthly life (life after death)?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness that God or a supreme being either does (or does not) exist?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness that you either did (or did not) exist prior to this lifetime?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness that a mystical universal connection or unity/oneness either does (or does not) exist?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness regarding earthly lifes meaning or purpose?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness regarding earthly lifes difficulties, challenges, or hardships?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any specific information / awareness regarding love?   No  

During your experience, did you encounter any other specific information / awareness that you have not shared in other questions that is relevant to living our earthly lives?   No  

Did you have a sense of knowing special knowledge or purpose?   No  

What occurred during your experience included:   Content that was entirely consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience   eigenlijk niet van toepassing

Not really applicable.

How accurately do you remember the experience in comparison to other life events that occurred around the time of the experience?   I do not know how my remembrance of the experience compares to my remembrance of other life events at time  

"remembrance" should be memory.

Discuss any changes that might have occurred in your life after your experience:   None.

My experience directly resulted in:   No changes in my life

Did you have any changes in your values or beliefs after the experience that occurred as a result of the experience?   No  

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience?   No        

Have you ever shared this experience with others?   Yes  Terloops aan een vriend die in de tunnel gezeten heeft, mijn zoon was er bij.

I casually mentioned it to a friend who had been through the tunnel, my son was there.

Ik was aan het zeveren! Heb het heel kort gehouden!

I was babbling! I kept it short!

Het was een reactie op het voorleggen van een artikel in een dagblad naar getuigenissen over BDE voor een Luikse professor. Mijn vriend zou er aan mee doen.

It was a reaction to an article in a paper [asking for] reports about NDEs for a professor at Liege. My friend was to participate.
(Translator's note: possibly refers to prof. dr. Steven Laureys, neurologist at Liege)

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience?   Yes   Ik had geen BDE maar wel kennis!

I didn't have an NDE but knew of them.

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened:   Experience was definitely real   Staat in mijn verhaal.

Its in my story.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience at the current time:   Experience was definitely real  

Have your relationships changed specifically as a result of your experience?   No  

Have your religious beliefs/spiritual practices changed specifically as a result of your experience?   No  

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience?   No      

Did the questions asked and information that you provided accurately and comprehensively describe your experience?   Yes