CHAPTER FIVE - LIFE AFTER DEATH

If I were to say that “life” on the other side is, in many ways, similar to life
on the plane we exist on now, many would say that I was crazy. Each of us
has our own conception of what to expect when we pass on. Some believe
that there is nothing and that when we die, that’s it. I tell you that “life”
continues for us - until the last day the Earth exists and then still continues.
Our soul “lives” forever.

So, if one were to believe in the “circle of life” (reincarnation) then what
happens between the lives we have? Many who have had death experiences talk of a “white light” which they are being drawn to. Many can look down at their bodies and hear the conversations going on. Those who return to life after having a near-death experience do so because it is not the time for them to die.

Before we are born we are given the date of our death. My guide has told me that I will die exactly one hundred years from the time of my birth. I do not know how this was derived, and I do not want to know.

I remember seeing a film called “What Dreams May Come,” and I knew instantly that the one who wrote this screenplay and/or book was given insight from the Creator. When we die we see what we want to see. In the film, the main character found himself in a beautiful garden with the most vibrant colors. As he walked, the colors squished under his feet. This was a result of his marriage to a woman who was an artist, a woman he loved unconditionally. So, what we think we will see, we do. Each of us on the “other side” dwells in a world we have created, and when we visit other spirits we are entering their world.

Of course, this is not the same on this side, but similarities do exist. For
example, if we want to work, there are jobs to be done. Many spirits are
guides, for each of us on this side has guides. But for most of us, we cannot
“hear” them communicate. Many spirits work with those in that gray place
- the place where those who have led unsavory lives dwell. Many spirits
work with children who have recently passed, since it is very difficult for a
child to understand what is happening. And of course, there are schools
with courses. As we learn from experiences in our lives, our soul learns on

the “other side” Every spirit can be productive, if desired. Certainly, those
who do not want to work or learn have that option. Nothing is forced upon
a spirit.

What is the environment like? Of course there are buildings which house
the classrooms, events to attend, like going to a piano recital by Mozart.
And spirits create the housing surrounding them. I have already chosen to
have a big house which will be in shades of purple, for purple is the color ofour universe. How am I sure that the color purple is the color of this
Universe? When the alien spacecraft crashed near Roswell, New Mexico in
1947, parts of the wreckage had symbols etched on it. Those symbols were in the color purple. It is well known that purple is the color of healing and spirituality. I love art deco furniture, so the interior of my house will be completely filled with that style.

Do we entertain? If we want to. If I want to invite some spirits for dinner,
this I can do. Will I cook? If I want to, or I can just imagine the food and it
will appear. The soul creates everything. But a chair must have a body to occupy it. Do spirits have bodies? If they want to. I can choose to look like either the Hunchback of Notre Dame or Elizabeth Taylor when she was 30. There are no age limits, of course, on the “other side.” Do spirits sleep? Eat? If they want to.

What about something like the weather in the next dimension? Seasons do
not exist. There is neither rain nor snow. Every day is sunny with temperatures ranging around 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Flowers and trees need
no water to live. Do they both grow? No, they stay the same, but will grow if your mind creates the growth.

I remember having a conversation with my older sister a few months after
her death. I was interested in what she was doing. She told me that she is
traveling all over the world, something she always wanted to do. She said
all she has to do is imagine that she is in a certain city, place, and she is
there. She was having the most wonderful time.

My mother had said that at the time of her death she saw herself in an
elevator lined with red velvet. It started ascending and she said that her
thought was “Is this what death is like?” When the elevator stopped and the
doors opened, she saw a young man in a white uniform who was there to
greet her. About 10 feet behind him about 12 other men, in the same white
uniform were lined up. The greeter took my mother to a place which she
described looked like a hangar for airplanes. There were tables and chairs
all over the place with people sitting and chatting. She was brought to a
table in which her deceased brothers and their wives, her sister and her
sister’s husband, sat. They all were very pleased to see her. My dad was
there, but he stood away from the table for he felt that that time she should
be greeted by them first. He had come down from his plane to see her.

There are 7 planes on the “other side.” A spirit can go down to a lower
plane but one who exists on a lower plane cannot go up until the soul is
ready to do so.

How is it decided what life to be born into? When the time is right to return
to a new life, our spirit meets with a group of very old souls. Let’s call them
“The Group of Elders.” We are asked one question, which is “Where do you
want to be born?” This narrows down what we then see, which is a series of
experiences in, say, 10 to 12 lives which will be born. Each life is discussed
with the group, and based on the experiences of the life which will help
most improve our soul, a decision is made as to which life we will be born
into.

In many lives we have had we meet the same people we have known in prior lives. One reason this occurs is to clear up any bad karma that was created in a past life, or another reason could be that we had a wonderful relationship with someone and want to repeat that experience. I met Ingrid playing bridge on the Internet. As soon as I met her at the table I knew that we shared a common bond. Our friendship grew and now there is another woman I will love the rest of my life. The first one is my ex-wife. My “guide,” (who I shall refer to as “Master”) substantiated the feeling I had when I met Ingrid. It appears that in approximately 50 prior lives we were husband and wife (alternating roles) and every marriage was a wonderful one.

I do believe that one of the reasons I helped to select my present life is that I am homosexual, so another marriage to Ingrid would be impossible. Ingrid has taught me much, and hopefully I have done the same for her. After all, in every life we have we are both teacher and student. Bad karma never existed between us two, but we love each other as friends. Seeing each other often is impossible, since Ingrid lives in Europe, but we communicate every day through the Internet.

Of course the question arises as to why we would help to choose a life of
suffering, a life of mental illness, a life of blindness. We are to learn, and
each of those lives will contain lessons we must learn. My health has not
been good, and as I said I have been hospitalized many times and the
amount of my suffering has been great. I lived for some time with the
mentally ill, and that was very difficult for me. Yet I knew I had to go
through all of it because I helped to choose that life knowing what would
happen.

I remember a time when I was living in that adult home with the mentally ill. One morning, directly after breakfast with all the residents there, I played the song “You Light Up My Life,” written and sung by Debbie Boone, Pat Boone’s daughter. She wrote that song to God. As mentally ill as many who listened were, they cried for they understood. They all had a love for God.

And so, as Nichiren Daishonin (the Creator of this Universe) taught his
disciples to find joy in suffering, that I have done. Sure, it sounds bizarre to
find joy when one suffers, but if you know the reason you suffer, you see the
joy in it. And that is the reason why God came to Earth to live in one human form - that of Nichiren Daishonin. Learning from us was not enough. The Creator had to experience the suffering we endure. God will not stop our suffering, for that is one of the ways our soul learns to become brighter and brighter. If we understand that, we can find that joy in our suffering.

How long a duration is it between lives? The elders come to our spirit when
they feel it is the time for us to return. But, during that time we are very
productive working, learning, experiencing. If this world is so bad, then
why do most spirits want to return to it? Why not just stay on “the other
side” forever? Because of all the worlds in this universe, the Earth has the
most suffering; therefore, our spirit learns the most by being here. And what
we want is for our soul to progress: to advance to a higher level. Eventually, for some of us who are very fortunate, the result will be with God forever, and that is what I want. Again, I am not comparing myself to the Four Messengers of God, but there is no reason why my soul cannot occupy the same plane as they do?

I remember seeing a delightful film called “Defending Your Life.” In it, we shown that when we die we must defend our lives in front of three “judges.” There are some very humorous scenes in that film. In one, Merryl Streep thinks it is wonderful that she can eat whatever she wants to and not gain weight. In actually, each day we live we are defending our lives. It is often said that if one does not take risks in life, we never get anywhere. How true that statement is. Why don’t more people take risks? It is through fear that holds them back. They fear failure; the fear defeat; they fear not being successful; they fear that their lives will be worse than before. This is where being positive plays so very an important role in our lives.