Saved by an Angel (16 page)

I heard the paramedics frantically saying that I had flatlined. I watched one of them, a tall blonde woman, scream, “You’re not doing this to me!” as she slammed me in the chest. I saw her hit me and was somewhat surprised that I didn’t feel it! I was revived and was code red at the local hospital.

I was going in and out of consciousness in the emergency room, with three doctors and several nurses in attendance. I was administered beta-blockers, and the doctors told my husband to call my family members so that they could come and say their final farewells to me. As the drugs coursed through my system, I felt cold, the deepest and most bone-chilling cold I have ever experienced.

Still uninformed about the severity and details of my condition, I started talking to a nurse. She had the sweetest smile and held my hand. She was of medium build and looked matronly. She didn’t wear a regular nurse’s uniform, which, in my confused state, I didn’t question. She told me that I’d indeed had a heart attack, but that it was over and I would never have another one. This news greatly eased my mind, and I drifted off to sleep.

When I awoke, I was in the intensive care unit, and a doctor asked me to decide which hospital I would like to use for my heart surgery. He also stated that I was to undergo cauterization at 1
P.M.
that day and that I was in a very bad way. Normally they scheduled such procedures for the following day, but as he explained, I was likely to have a fatal heart attack at any time. A helicopter would soon land on the hospital roof and transport me to a town 30 miles away for immediate surgery.

To say that I was confused by this news would be an understatement, since the nurse had assured me that I would never again have a heart attack. At 1
P.M.
, I went to the coronary lab and was given the cauterization. Although 40 percent of my heart was not working, the doctors were astonished that I had no blockage left and no need for surgery.

One week later, I was released. The doctor said that the damaged heart could possibly recover over time, but I would still probably suffer 15 to 20 percent permanent damage to the muscle.

Several weeks later, I returned to the hospital for a stress test and was eager to talk to the nurse who had been so reassuring. I scanned all the faces and met some of the nurses who had attended me that night. They firmly assured me that no such person had been with me that night in the room! I also learned that hospital policy would never have allowed any staff member to say such things to me, since my prognosis at that time was dire!

Fifteen months later, my heart doctor dismissed me and said that he was amazed that my heart muscle showed no damage. He said, “Whatever you’ve done has worked!” Since that time, I had unrelated, minor surgery and had to inform the hospital that I’d had a heart attack, which surprised them since my EKG showed no problem with my heart at all. They even asked me if I was sure!

What I
am
sure about is that the kindly nurse was my very own guardian angel!

Chapter 5

V
ISIONS OF
D
ECEASED
L
OVED
O
NES

A
NGELS
H
ELPED
D
AD
S
TAY WITH
U
S
by Dianne Galligan

Fourteen years ago, I lost my younger brother (age 29) to suicide. When I got home on the day of his funeral, my answering-machine tape had all been used up. Yet everyone who knew me would have known that I was at my brother’s funeral. I played the tape, and all I heard was an electrical sound throughout the whole recording. I knew that it was my brother communicating with me. He used to call me up and tease me on my answering machine all the time.

A month later, my father had a massive heart attack. My brother appeared to me (I
know
I wasn’t sleeping!) and told me he would be coming to get my dad. I begged him not to take my father because this was only a month after his own death. I told him that we needed Dad, and my mother couldn’t possibly handle another loss so soon. So I prayed to God and sent angels to my father to protect him. I called the hospital, and they told me that my dad was having a very bad night.

I know it was the angels that helped Dad stay with us for another eight years even though his heart was very weak. When my father died in 1994, the doctors said they didn’t know how he had lived so long because his heart was so damaged. But I knew why!

T
HANK
Y
OU
, D
AD
!
by Peggy Keating

My father died in 1973. Approximately two years later, he saved my life.

I was driving late at night, very tired. Foolishly, I was determined to keep going. I was drifting off to sleep, and suddenly I saw my father standing at the side of the road! He appeared in full form, wearing the same kind of clothing he had worn when he was alive—there was no mistaking him. When I looked in the rearview mirror, he was gone. Needless to say, I was wide-awake for the rest of the trip. Thank you, Dad!

W
ATCHING
O
VER
U
S
by Catherine Kilian

My father, William, passed away from a massive heart attack when I was 13. We had a tight father-daughter relationship and did almost everything together. His passing was very tough on me because not only did I lose my dad, I lost my best friend.

Eight years later, I was seven months pregnant with my first child—what would have been my father’s first grandchild. My husband and I had just finished setting up the nursery, and completely exhausted, we turned in early. In the early-morning hours, I needed to use the bathroom, and when I opened the door, my father was standing right at the threshold of the nursery, looking in. He turned, saw me, and smiled. Scared, I slammed the door shut. After realizing what I had seen, I opened the door again, and he was still there, smiling. He walked into the nursery and disappeared.

I know he is watching over my daughter every minute, and I know in my heart that he loves her.

D
AD
A
LWAYS
E
NCOURAGED
M
E
by Andrea

I was in my early 30s and trying to get into law school. Becoming a lawyer was a personal dream of mine, and my father and I always talked about it. When I first tried to gain admission to law school after receiving my bachelor’s degree, I didn’t do too well on the entrance exam, so I gave up. My dad wanted me to keep trying, but I didn’t.

Soon after, though, my father passed away. He was only 48, and he just died too young. For Dad’s sake, I decided to try applying to law school again. So I again took the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), and even though I studied hard, I still didn’t do that well. But I was determined, so I applied to law school anyway, hoping that my good university grades would offset my poor showing on the exam.

A few weeks after I applied to law school, a friend called to tell me that she’d gotten accepted to my hoped-for school! I was very happy for her, but very sad for myself. Since I hadn’t heard anything and she
had,
I naturally concluded that I hadn’t been accepted. I cried and just wanted to give up. Everything I had worked so hard for was again going out the window. I was so upset that I just shut myself away from everyone. I couldn’t believe that this had happened to me again. I was devastated.

That night—I will never forget this—I was asleep, and my room lit up with a very bright light. It was so bright that it woke me up. That’s when I saw my dad in the center of the light. He told me that everything was going to be okay, and that I was going to be accepted by the law school. He said that I would definitely finish the program, and that my dreams of becoming a lawyer would come true.

I was so happy to see him! I wanted him to stay and talk to me, but he said he only came to tell me that he was okay and was watching over me and that things were going to turn out all right. I begged him not to go, to just stay and talk. He told me he had to go, and that his work with me was done, but that he would be with me always.

Two days later, I received the news that I had been accepted into law school! Just like Dad had promised, I graduated. Since then, I’ve passed the bar exams in two states and can practice law in both. My story may sound strange, but I know for a fact that my dad was there, and I won’t ever forget it.