I grew up in the 1970’s in Nutley, New Jersey. It was such a great place to be a kid and I have many fond memories of those carefree days. One of my earliest memories was of meeting my neighbor who moved in next door to me when I was only 3 years old. His name was Charlie and from the moment we met the bond we would share would prove to survive the many years that we would later spend a part. I can still close my eyes and see his little face with his hazel eyes which were a glimpse into his soft hearted soul. Although both of us had our own difficulties with each of our family lives, when we were together we managed to be free of all of our troubles. We would spend the next ten years connected at the hip and particularly during the summer months we would be together almost every day. Our days generally would start very early in the morning and Charlie would be waiting in his kitchen as early as 7:00 a.m. to let me in the back door and there he would share with me his breakfast. The rest of our days would be filled with long bike rides, trips to the candy store, kick ball after dinner, man hut at about dusk and we ended most nights during the summer by getting ice cream from the ice cream truck. The ultimate way to end our days however, was spent catching lightening bugs which was among one of our most favorite things to do together. We would share so many great days together with such sweet memories.
Charlie was indeed a handful as a kid and his life was made even more complicated by the fact that his father had a drinking problem. Even as a little girl, I knew that he needed someone to protect him and that was my daily mission. There were countless times that I would knock on his door to find that it would be the precise moment his father was in a rage. I was all of 7 years old and my instincts then were so in tuned and I always knew when Charlie was hurting or in trouble. I realized then that my purpose was to help him escape those horrific times. Charlie would always be thankful to me for when I was able to save him from the wrath of his father. We had formed such a tight bond, we were such good friends and my heart was always so heavy for the burdens he carried.
Charlie’s family moved from next door when we were 13 years old but he would only go across town. I remember riding my bike to his new house and on my ride back feeling as though I was losing my best friend. Even at that young age, Charlie would be involved in things that he had no business doing and drugs sadly became a part of his youth. Our parents would remain close friends and I would see them throughout the years. However, Charlie and I would become distant during that time because of his route of the drug scene.
We would again reunite in our early 20’s and my sister and I would even share an apartment with Charlie. That was the beginning of a time in our lives that we all would reconnect and we would go on to share in countless weekends at my Mom’s house in Beachwood, New Jersey. We had so many laughs, and undoubtedly Charlie was absolutely one of the funniest guys I knew. We were always laughing and he was a big reason for the laughter! All of our lives would be moving along, engagements, weddings, babies were being born and we all would gather and share in those great times and celebrate those events in all of our lives. Unfortunately, Charlie would always have an underlying drug addiction which prevented him from truly moving on and it broke all of our hearts to see him this way. He would seemingly be doing so well, have a great job, have beautiful girlfriends, yet he was always battling his addiction. There was nothing any of us could do to help him overcome these demons.
I would go on to marry at 28 years old and at that time we were all still in touch. Charlie and his family were at my wedding and that would be one of the last times our families would gather together. Then once both of our parents passed away that would be when we would lose all contact. It would be many years before Charlie would connect with me in the most unbelievable experience that I have ever had. Up until this time, I had already had quite a few supernatural experiences, but none like this. The way in which Charlie contacted me was beyond anything I could ever imagine. Charlie would reach out to me one last time and this experience will be something that remains with me for the rest of my life.
It was now 15 years since I had heard from Charlie or his family and here I was in my early 40s. I had already been using my gift publically now for over seven years. At this time I would have many experiences with my clients where I would connect with those people in their lives who were here as well as having a connection with those who had passed away. It was in mid November of 2008 and up until now the experiences I had were mostly for my clients and not so much for me. There is one other time when I was in my late teens that I had my own personal experiences similar to this, but this time by far was just an undeniable event. That other story is very moving and I promise I will share that story at another time. This was an unbelievable connection to Charlie and this time he was calling me not only before he left this world but afterwards as well.
It was Sunday, November 16, 2008 and I had thought about Charlie through the years but this day the thoughts of him were just so intense. Not knowing what to make of this prompted me to google him. Funny enough, up until this time, I had never googled a soul in my life so this googling was very new to me. From the search, I was able to figure out I had the right Charlie and I saw that he had moved to Virginia and that he was a project manager for a big construction company. It appeared he was doing well and I sat there looking at the screen pondering whether or not I should try to reach out to him? My heart was heavy just as it always had been for him but I decided that I should just wish him well, say a prayer and hope that his life was on track. Knowing his history of battling drugs, I did not feel it was fair for me to contact him because I did not want to involve my family in this sort of a situation. I sat there in deep thoughts of him, thinking about our years spent so close together but I let it be and did not try to contact him. There is a piece within me that I will forever question if that was the right choice.
It was on the Friday after Thanksgiving 2008 I had awoken early and sat down at my computer with a mission to catch up on some work for a friend of mine. Being his books needed to be completed by the end of the year, it was my sole intent to do just that as I was very far behind. I describe what happens next as though I was possessed. You see my full intentions were to do just that, turn on the computer and get that work done. So here I was, sitting in front of my computer and what did I find myself doing but regoogling Charlie. I recall even as I am doing this, I am thinking to myself why am I doing this since I had just googled him a few weeks earlier? But I regoogled him and this time when his name appeared, I sensed immediately something was not right because his name was along side an 86 year olds name. Perplexed, I opened the page and there it was Charlie’s obituary! He had passed on November 18, 2008 just two days after I googled him the first time. As I wiped away the tears from my eyes I read further to find he was survived by his wife, whose name was the same as mine, and that the funeral mass was being held that morning in a town close to where I live at 9:30 a.m. There was no doubt in my mind that this was no coincidence but a direct contact from Charlie.
I proceeded to awake my husband, who by this point in time had become very use to my unexplained experiences. I told him that I just discovered Charlie had passed away and that his funeral was being held that morning. My husband gently said to me, “I suppose we are going to a funeral for a friend today.” We made our journey to the church and we awaited the arrival of family and friends. As the friends were coming into the church and I was telling them my name is Penny, whose name was the same as Charlie’s wife, it became apparent that there were some who had not met Penny, and they were consoling me! My husband suggested we remain in the back until Charlie’s family members arrived as to not confuse anyone further. When Charlie’s sister Maureen came in and we approached one another, she hugged me sobbing and saying that I was the first person she thought to call when this happened but she had lost my contact information and that she could not believe I was standing before her. She asked me how did I know his funeral was today and I explained what had happened. Through her tears she said to me it did not surprise her in the least because she knew just how close Charlie and I were as kids. Just to give you an idea of those who would remember me, I also had the pleasure that day to see Charlie’s uncle, who was now in his 80’s. Even though many years had passed since he saw me last, he remembered me well. Now comes in Charlie’s brother Greg who I naturally assume will surely remember me, no reason why he would not. As I approached him, I say it is Penny, I am so sorry for your loss and we embraced with a hug. As Greg steps back, he turns to his son and says “this is your Uncle Charlie’s wife Penny!” Just as in life, Charlie was one of the most comical practical jokers I have ever known, and it was certainly clear to me that he wanted us to know he still was the same old funny guy and that none of what I was experiencing was just by chance. Greg later explained that I had confused him because he too had never met Charlie’s wife. He recognized me and knew who I was, but in his grief it was just not registering for him. I am certain that Charlie was laughing very hard in heaven with that joke he played on us!
My heart was heavy and saddened that Charlie’s life had ended the way it had and at the same time, I was delighted to know that he was able to reach me to say a final goodbye. Charlie was never able to be gone of the demons that had haunted him since our childhood. It was very clear to me that Charlie came to me those two days before he died to let me know he was leaving and he undoubtedly made sure that I would be there at his funeral.
For me, there is no other explanation for what transpired in November of 2008 other then Charlie knowing to contact me using the nonconventional means that I had become very accustomed to using for my clients. As sad as I was over his loss, I knew that Charlie was letting me know just as when we were children, that we had that special connection, which remained intact until his death and even now, I still get visits from him.
Since Charlie’s passing, I have also been back in touch with his sister Maureen and she has shared many stories and there is no doubt that it was Charlie who was connecting with her from the other side. Charlie wanted Maureen to know that he was alright and that he is still with her in spirit.
Also, in the months that followed his passing there were plenty of other experiences when it came to his wife Penny. I fully believe it was Charlie who orchestrated our connection from above. I will share that story at another time and there will be more of my experiences to follow. I hope that you enjoy them all.
May the angels who guide us all be watching over you and over all of your families!
Angel Blessings,
BettyAnn