The Good Neighbour – Love And Friendship

The Guardian Of The Night – Source: Beauty Of The Arts

 

What’s the most real-life scary story you have posted on a blog? I’ve had several that I certainly would not wish to share, but this one is worth sharing. At least, I feel it is.  I call it my ‘Guardian Angel’ story. So here goes. 🙂

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The phone rang in the kitchen just as I was about to go out. The aerobics class was at eight p.m. and I hated being late. Should I let the phone just ring? Whoever it was could call back later. It was getting dark outside, dang! I hated driving at night on route Seven.We lived in Reston, Virginia at that time. I was in my early thirties.

…

I rushed over to pick up the phone and said a rather impatient ‘hello’? A lady’s voice at the other end, one I didn’t know, answered :

“So sorry to bother you. You don’t know me but I know you. I was able to get your number from the phone exchange. I hope you don’t mind my doing this but I am concerned about you.”

I was stunned by her message as our telephone number was ex-directory. What did she mean by concerned? And why hadn’t the phone exchange alerted me before giving out my number ? I thought they would have asked permission.
With a seriously shaky  voice, she said, “ There is a rapist in the area, do you know?”

“Night Fairies:
by: Hans Zatzka – source: Beauty Of the Arts

I didn’t of course. I rarely read the newspapers. Our only direct neighbors were out all hours and we rarely saw them. Feeling awkward she continued on :

“I know you go out about this time, I have seen you from my kitchen window. I live just down from you, facing on to the parking area. I am just calling to say don’t go out tonight. There is a guy in the area whose been raping women. He’s attacked three women so far.”

Stunned by what she said, I asked for more details. She didn’t have many to share other than to be very careful. I thanked her very much for caring. That night, I stayed home. Still, the thought of a rapist being around, was somewhat disturbing. I couldn’t sleep well.  Luckily for us, our house had been sold recently so, we would be moving out in a week or two.

We’d sold the house to an investor, who had, in turn, rented the house to two young women in their twenties. They came around to visit a few days after the sale went through. I gave them a house inspection and, remembering the rape, I warned them to be very careful not to take any chances.

The day we moved out, I wrote them both a note, advising them to make sure the locking ‘Charlie bars’ were always closed on the patio window. We’d had them installed a long time ago. They had done a great job to secure the back of the house. I popped the note into a kitchen drawer, where they would find it. We moved out and thought no more about our old house, until I met a former neighbour who said:

“Have you read the newspaper?” I said I didn’t often read newspapers. “Your house made front page! A guy broke in the other night and raped a young woman. She’d only just got home. He was inside waiting for her. Poor girl, she nearly died!”

…
My heart skipped a beat. How had this man managed to get inside? I’d given the girls instructions to keep the house safe. What could have happened? Later, I learned they had forgotten to close the Charlie bars on the patio window. He’d forced the patio doors open.

It could have been me who had been the victim. How close had I come to being attacked by this villain? The thought made me shudder.

I often wondered about the neighbour who called me that night so long ago. I never met her. I still ponder on how she’d got my number without my consent. Of course, I am grateful she did. Had she been a guardian angel sent to warn me? I’ll never know. I will never forget her or her thoughtfulness.

just to finish, I would like to add, I still feel so sorry for the young women who was raped. I tried to be a guide to her by leaving a message in the kitchen drawer, also alerting her to the fact, I wish she’d had taken the messages to heart, for she didn’t deserve to suffer that way. No, not at all. Eve

The Apprentice Angel and Jean – Myths & Legends

A long time ago story about a young girl near to death. The story is  poignant in as much as it tells of an apprentice angel whose duty it is to accompany Jean to Heaven. Jean doesn’t mind going with the angel as she has strong faith in God. Still, she first wants to see her mother one more time. I wrote this story twenty years ago. Only found it in my files tonight. I am posting due to bad weather that  will keep me awake tonight. Better to sit here and share my memories. Will sleep tomorrow. 🙂

Jean lay desperately ill in a hospital bed. She had suffered a severe
head wound which had left her totally blind and very ill. She had
heard the doctors discussing her fate with her parents, that the
prognosis was not good.

Afterwards, her mother had sat beside her on the bed and squeezed both
of her hands. Jean could feel her trembling as she tried to restrain
her tears, but in the end her mother had completely broken down.

“Mum don’t cry, I am not afraid to die,” she whispered.

Her mother stroked Jean’s face and kissed her cheek. She couldn’t find
any words to comfort her daughter. She continued instead to caress her
lovely child. Jean could smell her perfume, a soft flowery smell of
Orchid essence. The smell comforted her greatly.
Jean was very tired and the medicine made her feel ill and listless.
After her parents had left, she fell asleep.

Everyday, her parents and other relatives visited her, sometimes
staying long hours. The saddest thing for Jean was that she couldn’t
see their faces. Her mother had a lovely face, and she longed to see
it once more before she died. She tried to visualise her features but
this got harder to do as the days went by.

It was late at night and Jean was listening to the nurses talking in
the corridor. But suddenly Jean felt very weary and noticed that the
nurses voices began drifting further and further away. Jean knew her
time had come and she fell into a final slumber.

Suddenly she became aware of a bright golden light filling the room.
She wondered how it was she could see again, when a small angelic
child stood before her.

“Hello Jean. Come, it’s time to go.”

Jean felt warm and peaceful and well. The terrible pains had
disappeared, and she felt lighter than air.

“Go where?” she said sleepily.

“To heaven,” said the little angel, holding out his hand.

Something jerked hard inside of Jean, “No” she said, with a start.

“What?” the angel said in surprise at this unexpected turn of events.
“Did you say no!”

This was the angel’s first important job and the last thing he wanted
was for something to go wrong, and here it was going wrong!

“No! ~ no you don’t understand. Your time is now and you must come with
me. Wonderful things are waiting for you.” He watched to see if his
coaxing had worked.

“No,” said Jean, “I want to see my mother just one more time. I want
to see her face. I can’t remember what she looks like.”

“But you can’t, Jean. You have to come now. I can’t go back without
you. I’m not allowed.”

“I’m not going with you until I’ve seen my mother’s face, and I mean
it!” Jean shouted, as she tried to pull herself back into her heavy
body, but for some reason, she couldn’t.

“I want to go back now!” Jean demanded. “Put me back!”

“I can’t, Jean, it is not up to me. I’m only here to guide you home to
heaven. I don’t know anything about this kind of stuff. They told me
it was a simple job because you were ready.”

Jean felt sorry for the poor angel, because angels do not lie, and
being a Messenger for God was no easy task, especially for a young and
inexperienced angel.

Nevertheless Jean didn’t want to go, before seeing her mother’s face
just one last time. She tried to explain to the angel how beautiful
her mother was and how much she loved her. She knew she had to die,
but, oh, just to see her one last time, just once more, then she would
be happy to go to heaven.

The compassionate angel listened with understanding to Jean’s plea,
but explained  he could not do anything to change the rules. Because
the rules were God’s rules, not his.

..
Jean stood next to her body on the bed. Everything around her was
shadowy and whispery except for the beautiful angel, and from the
deepest part of her being she cried, “Please!”

Never had the angel felt such a word, it came from Jean’s soul,
powerful and urgent. It was born from a love so strong that a thousand
angels voices grew weak by its urgency.

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Suddenly, from the light came a tall and wondrous figure of a man, one
who knew all things, one who knew what is was to be a child. He spoke
and his voice was like liquid sunshine and he said,

“Your plea will not go unanswered, Jean, for when one looks upon the
love between a child and mother, one is truly in the presence of God.”

He placed his hands upon the child’s eyes and said,

“Sleep my child and lay your burdens upon me this night, for too much
is this for one so young to carry.”

The next morning Jean awoke to  look into the eyes of her mother
and she was even more beautiful than she had remembered. Everyone in
the hospital called it a miracle. She had never felt so happy in all
her life and that night when Jean went to sleep, the little angel came
and took her home…

-Retold by “moi”