Dreams, Memories & Keys

Interlude 1 - Those We Love

"It worked!" the soul known as Bernard in the heavens, and Bernie on Earth exclaimed. "My brother and my wife remember that I visited them. They know it was me. They are talking to each other, trying to figure out what it might mean."

"Uh huh," the soul known on Earth as Melody and in the heavens as Angel replied. "Papa knows about dreams. I don't know your Norma, but Papa does. He will teach her. That's what it took last time I helped someone I love."

"Did he succeed?" Bernard asked.

Angel smiled. "Yes. He serves the Lord now like me. I'm pretty sure Papa can finish his task if I encourage him too."

Bernard considered the spirit of the little girl who had such faith in her ability to help, and also in her Earthly father, the same man who in life was his Earthly brother, the man who in his professional life was known as Gregory Jacob Gaffney, and in private as Greg J. Abernathy.

"Do you think I should talk to him too?" Bernard asked.

Angel considered him. "Yes, I think so. If he loves you, he will hear you, if you love him too. You could also visit Norma's sister, but I think you love your brother more."

"I do, though I think he is afraid of me," Bernard told her.

"I don't think so. Papa is good with dreams. That helps. He knows I visit him. I even tried to tell him about you, but he doesn't remember everything I tell him when he's awake. I think Mama is trying to help him remember though," Angel did her best to explain.

"If he is not afraid, why doesn't he talk to me?" Bernard wondered.

"Maybe he doesn't know why you are there," Angel suggested.

"He should ask," Bernard suggested.

"I'll tell Papa that," Angel promised.

"When?" Bernard wondered.

"Tonight," Angel promised. "After Mama and Papa go to bed."

"What should I do?" Bernard asked.

"When Papa looks at you, say something," Angel suggested.

"Even if he can't hear me?" Bernard wondered.

"He will try if he can see your lips move," Angel assured him.

Bernard nodded. "Very well. I will try. Perhaps it will work."

"If it works, maybe Papa and your soulmate will talk to one another more. Maybe that will help them to succeed," Angel said hopefully. "That's what I did before, the first time I tried to help someone on Earth."

"Who did you help?" Hannah asked curiously.

Angel smiled, but she didn't answer.

"Angel's soulmate is associated with a different life," the Angel of the Lord said. "Angel must focus on the life she just left to have the most impact there."

"Then this our one opportunity," Hannah told her son.

"Are you able to help?" Bernard asked the soul who was once his mother.

"I can only visit those I love who also love me. Most of the people I love, except Jayln and my sister, are here, and he already has enough people disturbing his sleep. You love Norma better than I. It needs to be you," Hannah recognized.

"I understand," Bernard told her. "I will do my best."

"That is all you can do. Free will remains in play for the people of the Earth," the Angel of the Lord reminded him.

With their strategy in place, the spirits of those loved on Earth made their plans to help them succeed. The Angel of the Lord watched these souls, motivated to act by love in a way those who succeeded in their own tasks rarely chose to do. The Lord allowed it if asked. Even here His children exercised a certain amount of free will. But the desire to do so was rare.

"Love between human souls is never amiss," the Lord Almighty declared. "It is out of love they act, seeking to help and influence those who still live to pick up their task for me. My Messenger is fulfilling her purpose for me, creating other messengers who may choose to serve me in the process. This is free will in action, even here in the heavens."

"It is indeed rare," the Angel of the Lord commented.

"Which is why it is so special. Watch, listen, and observe. In time we may see how well their influence is received," the Lord replied.

And so, while the human spirits of those who succeeded in their task for the Lord in life and now lived in the heavens acted out of love to help their families, the heavenly host watched eager to witness the outcome of their deeds.

c