We received a voicemail from my son, on Tuesday, 5 June, 2012, at a time when the phone did not ring (we were sat by it watching Jubilee celebrations on TV).  I picked up the voicemail a day or so later and it was James, of that there can be no doubt.  I let his friends and family hear it, without giving a clue as to what it was, and they all had the same reaction of slight shock, embarrassment, sniggering, then asking "Yes well ... it can't be can it???"   

We have no doubt it is James, and we are left trying to figure out how it got there.  There are three possibilities, in our minds: 

1.  It is a message he left prior to his transition 15 months ago, which only got delivered now (I have heard of messages and texts being delivered up to a week or so late, but never over a year late - I checked online, and most telephone companies delete any undelivered messages from their servers each month, otherwise the backlog would be too much for them to cope with). 

2.  It was someone either faking James' voice or in possession of a recording of it, who rang up and either impersonated him or played the recording of his voice into the phone. 

3.  It was an ADC from James. 

The first two possibilities don't explain how the phone never rang at the time of the message.  I also know of no-one, not even his friends, who had his voice on a recording, and who were capable of doing No.2, which would be a pretty sick thing to do to a grieving family.  Also, the message is so clear, and doesn't sound like a recording within a recording.  It is James distinctive voice, with all the correct inflections and intonations, and, to our mind, no-one could impersonate him that well, even if they wanted to. 

We believe the message was, in fact, James. 

The audio file of the message is available to hear on James' memorial site, under 'Gallery' and then 'Audio' - it is the first un-named file in the list of songs: 

http://www.forevermissed.com/james-bubear/#gallery%2Fsongs

Was this experience difficult to express in words?  Yes

Disbelief among general population - so we tend to keep quiet about it as it is difficult to talk about it with others.

Did you ONLY sense an awareness of presence of the deceased without actually seeing, hearing, feeling or smelling them?           

No

Did you hear the deceased or hear something associated with the deceased?          Yes

            Describe what you heard, how clearly you heard it and what was communicated:    James' voice saying 'Hello@  Hellooooooooooooo?' very clearly.   

Certainly not an EVP-type sound with white noise and interference.

            Did the voice or sound seem to originate externally or outside of you, inside you, or did you not hear a voice or sound, but had a sense of knowing what was communicated?  From a voicemail

            If you heard a voice or sound, was it similar or dissimilar from the voice or sound the deceased made when they were alive?           Exactly the same.

            Is there any possibility what you heard was from any other source present in the surroundings at the time of your experience?           See above.

            Was there any possible impairment to your hearing at the time of the experience?   None

Did you feel a touch or experience any physical contact from the deceased?            No

Did you see the deceased?         No

Did you smell a distinct smell, scent, fragrance or odor associated with the deceased?      No

How long did the experience last?        A few seconds

Could you sense the emotions or mood of the deceased?           Yes

He sounded as though he was happy and  alert, and almost joking as if to say "Why aren't you answering?" but in a happy way.

Did the deceased give you information you did not previously know?  No

How do you currently view the reality of your experience?           Experience was definitely real

            Please explain why you view the reality of your experience as real or not real:           It is a voicemail I have recorded and put in the internet, and it has been listened to by many friends and family of James, who all agree it is him.

            Was the experience dream like in any way?   No  

Describe in detail your feelings/emotions during the experience:           Shock, baffled.

Was there any emotional healing in any way following the experience?           Yes

It just confirms to me that James is with us, and answering us when we ask him to do something - I had asked him to let me hear his voice many times.

What was the best and worst part of your experience?      Hearing his voice again, and having it on voicemail so I can keep it forever.  James is a clever communicator, and I feel he purposely did not call the phone, because he knew there would be no way of recording a phone call in order to keep it.

Has your life changed specifically as a result of your experience?         Yes                 Describe:      A sense of knowing that my son is ok, and he is well, and he still exists

Did you have any changes of attitudes or beliefs following the experience?   No      

Did the experience give you any spiritual understandings such as life, death, afterlife, God, etc.?  Yes            See above

Death Compacts are when two or more living people promise among themselves that whoever dies first will try to contact the other(s).  Have you ever made such a compact?        No

Did you observe or hear anything regarding people or events during your experience that could be verified later?          No

What emotions did you feel during the experience?            Growing sense of excitement, wonder, relief to hear from him

Was the experience witnessed or experienced by others?           Yes

Did you have any sense of altered space or time?   No

Did you have a sense of knowing, special knowledge, universal order and/or purpose?    No

Did you become aware of future events?       No

Did you have any psychic, paranormal or other special gifts following the experience that you did not have prior to the experience?         No

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

Did you meet or see any other beings other than the deceased?            No

Did you see a light?           No

Did any part of your experience seem to occur in a place other than the location described above?            No

Have you shared this experience with others?         Yes     See above - mostly shock and disbelief "It can't be him can it?"

Have you shared this experience formally or informally with any other researcher or web site?   No

Were there any associated medications or substances with the potential to affect the experience?            No

Following the experience, have you had any other events in your life, medications or substances which reproduced any part of the experience?         No 

Did you ever in your life have a near-death experience, out of body experience or other spiritual event?           Yes 

Too many to explain here.

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

Please offer any suggestions you may have to improve this questionnaire.    None