Not sure if this is the section to put this under,but when something compels you so strongly to write this,its time to share.My dad was a heavy drinker,lived his life for himself and along the way lost all his young children because the drinking came first.Many years ago my dad came to me with an experience he had the night before,it was hard for my father to do as I am a spiritual person,I've always had my faith to carry me, my dad didn't believe in God or Angels.He had actually been home that night,had not had a drink which was very unusual for him.He went to bed and woke to the feeling of someone sitting on the bed,as he lay there he felt them get up,the street light shun through the window and as my dad turned over he saw a figure standing there.He described him as someone you could almost reach through,he was wearing a long white dress(as my dad called it) with a goldish rope around the waist and a twine sort of headband.He told me that this figure told my dad that he needed to change his ways or something would happen,he needed to repent.My dad asked me what repent meant,after explaining to my dad he said "oh thats hogwash,I dont believe in that stuff",Yet,He told me the experience the night before had scared him to the point where he got out of bed,turned on the kitchen light and sat at the table,the figure then came to stand at the kitchen enterance,looked sadly at my dad,turned and walked away.My dad went to follow but he was gone.I sat looking at my dad with mixed emotions,I was in awe of his experience,yet felt sadness,I knew my dad wasnt going to change at that point in his life.I told my dad that he should listen,that he got to have an experience that most people wish they could and I told him he needed to stop living his life in such a selfish way,learn human compassion and give of himself.He went right back to drinking that night.As time went on my dad had many close calls,still didnt change him.Then one day he left the bar and hit a rut in the road on his motorcycle doing over 75 mph without a helmet on and was rushed to the trauma center.While in ICU we were told he might not make it,he made it through 24,then 48 hours,he remained in a coma for weeks.I prayed by his side,asking God to please let him live,holding his hand,I said all the things to my dad that I needed to say,words that had never been said between us,those words were "I love you". The day before my birthday I got the call "Your dad is waking up". My first words from my dad when he was able to talk "I heard everything you said,I love you too".
I knew then that something had happened to my dad while he was in the coma.He finally truly believed,He started reading the bible when he went home from the hospital.Sadly 6 years later,at the age of 56 my dad didnt wake up one morning,an autopsy showed he had cancer,it was so bad in his liver that it exploded and killed him.Although I was thankful that for 6 years I had a relationship with my dad that I never had as a child or through my growing up years,my mind went back to the experience he had and I wished he would have listened back then and we could've had more time together.Maybe in some way its my dad compelling me to share this story,I dont know,But I do know I felt a deep sense of warmth while typing and I can end this story with a smile on my face and wonderful memories of a man who was given another chance at the time of that motorcycle accident..Rest In Peace Dad,Thanks for the many times I've been blessed to hear chimes and feel the warmth when I've needed you the most since you've been gone.

What a great story. . .so happy that you had that experience and were able to share it.

Thank you all so much.As a child,teen and then young adult I dealt with alot of abandonment issues,at 6 years of age my mother left. At 8 years of age I suddenly no longer lived with my dad,my siblings and I were all shipped off to different homes,there was no longer a sense of family,all sense of belonging anywhere was gone..I can honestly say that I am truly thankful for the relationship my dad and I ended up having,instead of him passing away and me being left with bitter feelings,he died being not only the dad that I needed and had longed for while growing up but also my dearest friend.