Tell us about your near death experience(s). These could include any events that seemed certain should have happened, but didn't, that would have profoundly changed your life if they had.

What 'close calls', or 'brushes' with death have you had?

Do you believe your escape/rescue contained any 'paranormal' or 'supernatural' elements?

How did you feel about your near 'miraculous' escape from certain death, calamity or serious injury at the time?

How do you feel about it now?
__________________________
"Death is a cessation from the impressions of the senses, the tyranny of the passions, the errors of the mind, and the servitude of the body." Marcus Aurelius

Another interesting topic from you SC.

Back in 2000 I was travelling to the store to pick up milk, bread and gravy.

On the way I was struck crossing the road by a car. Its funny because had I died then my last thoughts would have been...

bread, milk, gravy...bread, milk, gravy...bread milk, gravy...bread, milk gravy...bread mi-oh!

it seems almost comical now, looking back. Yet the more I think about the stranger it seems, yet not in the way you would see on the TV or read in books; More mundane than that.

The doctor told me that had the car been travelling any fast I wouldn't have survived. It hit me and I blacked out, eye witnesses state that I rolled up the bonnet and broke the window screen of the car. The car then stopped and I rolled off and under a parked car. One of my trainers had come off while I was in the air.

Yet though all of this, I came around in the ambulance with not a scratch on me. My only injury was that at one point I bit my tongue...how thery annoyin asth yoo can imathine...

Yet it’s almost sad in a way, a few miles more and I would have died. Just that little less and I was all but unscathed. I must have rolled the dice of fate lucky that day. Double 6 go me.

+The post is marked with a muddy paw print.+

Interesting topic SC Russ - allow me to re-print something I related on another forum some time ago....

During a Mountain Rescue I slipped on Ben Vrackie which is a pretty High Mountain. The nature of the Waterproof I was wearing acted like a sleigh on the wet grass. I spun out of control down the side of the mountain, eventually my feet pointed downward and I could see everything hurtling past me....I remember mentally 'staying calm' but for some reason I was being pushed in a direction I didn't want to go. I tried to use my hands like a rudder but that didn't work. I just let myself go and incredibly I really believe that something which I couldn't see pushed me further and further to the right side....It didn't make sense because I should have been heading straight down (although I accept that even a small inclination in that direction would take me in that direction)....but all in a matter of seconds I got pushed further and further to the right until eventually I fell off a ledge on the mountain and I thought 'This is it!' but I remained totally relaxed as panicking gets no one anywhere. I landed in the only deep water pool on the entire mountain. I must have slid some several hundred feet before landing in it...going over a 30/40 foot drop on the way. The only deep pool...the only one...and I swear something 'hidden' pushed me in that direction. Creepy? Something hidden? Or just luck?

I should say that I bust both ankles badly and one heavy duty climbing boot was ripped to shreds by rock on the way down...but I'm sitting here telling the story....something was on my side. I'm sure of it.

Ben

Aye it was the same for me, it was Oh I'm about to die. It was just, 'oh there is a car coming’ the sort of 'oh' you might give if somebody told you it was going to rain tonight.

I suppose the Brain does have time to calculate the dangers, or adrenaline just blocks it out allowing you to concentrate more on the situation rather than the danger.

Any other ideas on why this might be?

+The post is signed with a single muddy paw print.+

I think it affects different people differently Bark - I've travelled the world in so many differing planes that I've lost count and yeah I suppose we all think at some stage 'What would I do if it were to come down but in one piece?' - I've always been one of those 'calm' people in physical situations and I have always told myself that 'I'll be calm, act quickly but calmly' - and yet the strange thing is, all the scientific reviews of passenger repsonses in such situations show that it is those who 'almost panic' who survive - it's those who trample other people down and push others out of the way who get out alive.....it won't change my thinking but it is food for thought.

Ben

I was 33 at the time this happened, and it was my first surgery for cancer. I went in hospital at 7 am and was prepped and was taken in surgery. I will explain what happened after I say this part. Some time during the surgery I kept seeing people I knew and asked them what they were doing in the surgery room. NO one said any thing , just smiled and stood there. I don't know how long they were there but, it seems like it was a long time. But all they did was smile at me and stand there around the table. I had the feeling they were waiting for something. The next thing I knew I was being yelled at to breath... OK , my parents told me ( dad was a doctor ) I had lost 4 pints of blood and had a heart attack on the table and they had to bring me back twice. I went to surgery at 7:30 am and I was taken to my room at 9:30 pm that night.
My dad told me they were sure I had died , because no one came to tell them any thing in all that time. He later got my file to see what happened. but, any way.. When I saw the people around the surgery table , that must have been them waiting for me to pass on. I dont know , but I will never forget it. And yes, it did change my life. I have cancer again , but this time when I go for surgery ( if I do ) I wont be afraid , as I know if I do die, I will have many loved ones who passed before me , to help me with the transition. I have no more fear of dieing.

Back when I was 7, me & my dad went to Victoria, BC for my dad's concert. It was around 2AM and we were driving around trying to find our way around the city. Out of no where this truck hit us on the left side. All I remember was looking at my dad and realizing he was dead. The driver of the truck had a little too much to drink but he claims he was good enough to drive, guess not.

Dear Bark,

Thank you for sharing your experience. It seems you were indeed very 'lucky' that day. What you expressed about the dispassionate view you had of the situation in that moment is not dissimilar from several near death experiences I have had.

My first escape from death was at an age when I was too young to understand. I was almost 3 years old when I was diagnosed with tuberculosis. I was immediately placed in a tuberculosis sanitarium for children and stayed there almost 2 years. As I wasn't in any pain I failed to realize the seriousness of my illness and how potentially close to death I became. My earliest memories of life originate in that place. To this day I still register a 'positive' response to a TB test.

I was placed in a foster home for a year while my mother, who had been in a separate TB sanitarium, was in the process of regathering my four older half siblings. When I returned to their home at age 5 I tried to gain the acceptance of my two older brothers who were 9 and 10 years of age. They rejected me. I can remember always trying to impress them. Though I was small I had a lot of energy and loved to run.

One day my mother asked them to take me with them somewhere. They reluctantly did so but usually ordered me to walk well behind them, I guess so no one would know I was with them. This one particular day I was so excited to get to go with them that I excitedly ran past them, between two parked cars, and into the street, in my foolhardy attempt to show them how fast I could run.

My short height, combined with the parked car obscured my view of oncoming traffic and the next thing I knew I was facing an oncoming car. Like you, I was somewhat unable to register the gravity of the situation and just froze like a deer in headlights. There was a terrific screech of brakes and the car stopped just inches short of me.

The thing I remember most about the incident was my mother hollering out the upstairs window at me in a way that indicated she was more concerned with her embarrassment of having such a stupid child over any concern for my safety.

In looking back on the incident it seemed very fortunate that the man driving that vehicle had such quick reflexes. It also seemed that he was prepared for such an event yet I don't know how he could have been.

Prior to that I almost drowned in the ocean. My brothers teased me because I couldn't swim. Being very determined, even as a child, I decided all I needed was a strong will to do so. I courageously dove into a crashing wave and was immediately upended by the force of the tide and began to tumble and twirl, unable to find solid footing. 'Luckily' one of my brothers ran over and pulled me out before I began gulping water and disappeared underwater.

A couple of years later we were visiting our cousins in the country. One of our favorite activities was picking blueberries, probably because we got to eat them as we went. To this day I love blueberries and continue to eat them almost everyday.

The woods around their home seemed so friendly and hospitable and always smelled so good to me. One day I decided to explore them more fully, perhaps hoping to find a new patch of fresh blueberries. Being young and fearless I was a prime candidate for also being foolish.

Before long I realized I didn't know where I was or how to get back to where I started. I wandered around for awhile but didn't panic. At 8 years old I really didn't understand how I could die of exposure if not quickly found. After more than an hour of fruitless searching for any familiar sign I began to have dark thoughts of never finding my way home and how angry that would make my mother.

Being raised a Catholic and having attended some church services, I had some idea that 'God' could be called on in such instances. I don't remember making any specific promises to Him but I do recall I was not adverse to silently calling out for some Divine Guidance.

I wandered around some more and was beginning to feel the pangs of panic rise within me but had not gotten to the point of running full flight in terror.
Very soon after this I emerged from a stand of trees to see that all the traveling I had done brought me back to a point near where I started.

With 359 other directions I could have taken it seems to me today to be somewhat 'miraculous' that I escaped this potentially life threatening situation unscathed physically as well as mentally and emotionally.

By age 12 I had a job delivering newspapers on an established route. I was quite trusting of people and naive as to what some people considered amusement. As I was attempting to leave a paper on the front porch I was redirected by a teenager to bring it around to the back door. As I was prone to move quickly I never heard or suspected what was awaiting around the corner for me.

As I turned the corner I took two steps before I realized a rather large dog was in the process of running full tilt directly at me. In that moment, like you, I was once again immobilized in time and space and held, almost as a captive bystander, as to what was about to happen.

In one instant he was airborne, mouth wide open, lips peeled back, teeth glistening in anticipation of their sinking into my throat. The next moment I heard the terrific sound of his jaws snapping closed. I opened my eyes in time to witness the horrific recoil of the beast whiplashing backwards as he reached the extended length of his tether.

I don't recall much of the feeling I had following that encounter other than relief. The lesson I gained from that experience was to always be prepared, something I would continue to develop as a Boy Scout.
______________________
"Hurry is the weakness of fools." Battasar Gracian

Well i was around 7 and i was messing around outside with this thin metal piece with a sharp jagged side trying to break it (don't ask why lol) so i put it on this metal pole and try to bend it every which way when it flys back somehow headed for my left eye. I have good reflexes but wow i don't know how i dodged it but i did and all i could remember was the scene in the movie "Thirteen Ghosts" where a girl's eye is cut open with something very similar to the thing that flew at me. I was so glad and lucky i didn't lose a eye :surrender

Dear Yeti,

I just read your post about losing your Dad. How truly sad and tragic. Your simple line "All I remember was looking at my Dad and realizing he was dead" was more than enough to bring tears to my eyes.

What a brave young man you are to have carried on as well as you have. The courageous spirit you conveyed in that single statement spoke volumes about you. The pain you hide must be immense.

My image of you has been forevermore reshaped. My respect for you has grown immeasurably. You are an outstanding individual. Everyone should possess your courage.
________________________
"Life is a long lesson in humility." J. M. Barrie

Dear Ben,

That certainly was a terrific fall you had. You were most fortunate to have landed as you did although breaking both ankles in the process must have been very painful. You seem unsure as to the source of your 'rescue' from your near death experience. Perhaps you question the reason for it.

I had a similar incident happen to me. I was a 14 year old Boy Scout troop leader having a hike with 4 fellow members in the Arnold Arboretum in Boston, Massachusetts. The previous night was very cold and several inches of new snow had fallen. The following day was clear, sunny and bright.

We were walking westward along a babbling brook consisting of a 2 foot drop off into a 5 foot wide creek full of large granite boulders. For some unknown reason I decided to break off from the group and travel atop a high cliff face that was to our left. Perhaps I thought the view would be better there and from that vantage point I could still keep an eye on the others from the heights.

All was going well until I came across a small stand of trees that obscured my view of the troops below. As I approached the edge of this 100 foot drop off my feet slid on an ice patch and the next thing I knew I was hurtling, feet first, down this almost vertical drop incline!

I cannot say I had a fall off the sheer rock face so much as it was a rapid slide downwards. In the 2-3 seconds it took to reach the bottom of the cliff I barely had time to think. I was not hurt, yet.

What I was then most concerned with was the ever increasing speed I was traveling down the continuing ramp of ice towards the rock strewn creek some 50 feet away. I must have been doing 60mpg, and I'm quite certain I would have been dashed to pieces, if something 'miraculous' hadn't happened.

Just 20 feet from the gaping jaws of what seemed like certain death I was quite suddenly yanked backwards by an unseen powerful force! When I came to a complete stop I looked around and discovered that a piece of fallen chain link fence, buried beneath the snow, had somehow grabbed onto my new 3/4 length coat, which was made of synthetic materials, and had pulled out a strip of the inner lining from the pocket to the sleeve. My coat was ruined but I was unharmed.

Dumbstruck, I slipped and fell down again as I attempted to stand up. Looking up at the towering rock mass I had just slid down I couldn't help but notice a narrow two foot wide 'slide' feature that had been cut, by natural forces, from the top to the bottom of the rock face. This was the exact path that my body took towards what appeared to be certain death but instead proved to be the path with the only possibility of salvation from a bloody painful end.

About a week later some Jehovah's Witnesses came to our door and started studying the Bible with my mother and me. I mistook this as a 'sign' that this is what God wanted me to pursue. In a few weeks we were attending their meetings and I would continue to do so for the next 10 years.

My previous near death experiences had only perked my curiosity in and beliefs about possible 'celestial' interventions but I was never so sure as when I was saved from certain harm that day in that 'miraculous' way.

Since that time I have openly acknowledged the role 'spirits', 'guides', 'angels' have played in my life and this personal belief has been the catalyst for doing the many positive things that I have for people.

I am so thankful to have been allowed to live as long as I have and as well as I have that it is all I can do to find ways of showing my gratitude in the form of helping others in a feeble attempt to show my appreciation for the good things that have done for me.
__________________________
"That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime--to set an example and when he is dead to be an inspiration for history." William McKinley

SC I love the way you post, each point is well written out and well described in the manner of a good book. They are a pleasure to read, thank you for sharing this with us friend.



Can I ask why you wrote this section in this manner? You use the word 'mistook' does this mean you no longer follow that God, just curious.

+The post is signed with a single muddy paw print+

Dear Bark,

Thank you for the kind words. In the fourteen months I have been posting here your comments are the nicest I've seen. In my dealings with others I have tried to be first and foremost, honest with them. Secondly, I observe scrupulously the principle of 'do unto others as you would want them to do unto you.' This was first spoken of as the 'Silver Rule' when Confucius spoke it and then later called the 'Golden Rule' when Jesus repeated it. Finally, I try to be as encouraging and supportive as I can honestly be.

I know some people here may be surprised in what I am about to say: I don't really write for them, I write for myself. It is a kind of therapy for me. When I finish writing I read over what I have written and sometimes I am astounded at how it came out on the page. The single word which best describes my own view of my writing: interesting.

However, I oftentimes don't feel like I can take credit for what I write. I feel like I am but an instrument of something Greater which is using me to convey the message. That is the main reason why I am not overly influenced by the positive, negative, or indifferent responses.

The only post in which I made a concerted effort to compose what I wanted to say was the recently published poem about my deceased dog. I must have rewritten it 50 times before I was satisfied that the rhythm, sentiment, rhyming and timing were all just right. There was no verbal acknowledgment as to the quality of the poem by anyone who read it. That's alright, I wrote it primarily for me.

When I was 10 years old I nearly died from a fever. Because we were poor there was no attempt to get me to a hospital. I simply had to sweat it out. My temperature was so high that I was delusional and while alone, in my bed, I began to hallucinate. I kept seeing ants, millions of them, swarming all over me, biting my flesh off and carrying it away. I just knew this was going to happen soon when my body was lowered into the ground.

I remember it well for it was the first time I purposefully called out to God to help me. I promised if He permitted me to live I would devote my life to serving Him. Ever since, I have been unable to turn away from anyone needing my help. This has not been because of any fear of breaking the promise of a sick little boy but rather the result of the realization and understanding of who I am and and in not being afraid of doing what is the most natural thing in my nature to do.

Many times a person doesn't even need to ask. Last week, as I was getting gas for my car I saw an older black man sitting on the curb by the air compressor. I could see he was probably homeless and hungry. I walked over to him and asked if he had ever eaten at the Chinese restaurant located in the plaza directly behind him. He said no, he hadn't.

I asked him if he would like to. He said sure and so I handed him $6.00 for him to purchase the all you can eat lunch buffet. He probably took the money and spent it on alcohol, but that's none of my concern. I did what I felt compelled to do. There is a transcendent quality about a life that is lived in this manner.

This transcendent feeling was formerly felt when I used to teach adult education classes in the evening at the local High School. I never prepared any of my lessons. It wasn't because I was lazy or didn't care enough about the course to prepare. It was mostly due to the feeling that it wasn't 'me' that was conducting the lesson but rather that the lesson was being conducted 'through' me. My faith was in the belief that the Source would say what needed to be said.

Whenever I would self-consciously become aware of myself and what I was saying I would stumble over what I was going to say next. In time I learned to simply accept and trust what I was saying, some of which seemed outrageous at the time, and not to question its Source. It seems I was living what I was teaching; lose yourself, stop trying so hard, relax and allow what is in your heart to flow freely. If your heart is good, what could there be in your words to frighten you?

As for using the word 'mistook'. I cannot be certain that I was led to following the Witness's by the same Force that saved me from the fall, although at the time I believed this to be so. As with everything, there is good and bad connected with every choice we make. The good part of being a Witness was that I learned a lot about the Bible. My becoming a missionary for them allowed me to get a 4D ministerial exemption from the military draft in 1968.

The bad may have been that I turned down a full scholarship to Boston College because I believed Armageddon was due to arrive in 1975 and I wanted to try to 'save' as many people as possible before then.

Who knows, if I had gone to college and became a doctor, lawyer or professor, I might have lived the lifestyle of the rich and famous but would I have become as 'rich' inside as I am today? I don't think so. What I do know is that it is counterproductive to spend too much time dwelling on the past, in a regretful way, especially when the only thing that exists is the ever present 'now'.

No, I no longer believe in the frightening God of the Witness belief. Their fear-filled teachings served as the incentive to discover the antithesis to all the fear in my life. When I dared to look beyond all that fear I discovered love. It was there all the time.

From what you have written it appears you have a deep understanding of what fear is. That being so, you need only to know that love is the exact opposite of fear and that love is everything that fear is not. Love is the motivating force of all Life and everything else is but some form or manifestation of fear. I suspect you already know this.

Thank you for serving as the inspiration for my response.
______________________
"Love is precisely to the moral nature what the sun is to the earth." Honore de Balzac

SC Russ i envy your experiences in life they really seemed to have given you definitve direction and purpose the exact opposite of myself. I suffer from a sever lack of motivation, purpose. All i have succeeded in doing so far in my life (albeit only 16 and 1/2 years) is realizing that the world is (excuse my immaturity) fucked up i feel as if i have undirected anger and frustration meaning it is counter-productive and now i am in danger of wasting my pontential as i have already done it in athletics (i could have easily been a college athelete but instead i was lazy and didn't work hard in any sport that i played) I wish i could just pull my spirit my fire off the couch. I guess i wrote this in the hope of guidance from you.

I know you did not ask me, Mande, but I'll say this, anyone and everyone can give you advice, but so long as you don't lite the fire inside yourself to get out of your rut and live up to your ideal potential, all the guidance and in the world will not help you, if you don't believe in yourself and do the best you can despite the world's shortcomings.

You need to reflect and meditate about yourself, your want, needs, in other words, know yourself--no one else can do this for you!

Good luck!!

Dear Mandelasdiscple,

I wanted to give the proper amount of space and attention to your request. Considering the subject matter was a bit off topic I decided to give my reply in a related thread you started 5 months ago:

http://www.alien-ufos.com/forum/showthread...2807#post332807
___________________
'Disbelief in futurity will loosen the belief in morality.'

ive had a few close calls. no surgeries. always been a very healthy person. but have narrowly avoided death on more occasions than i'm comfortable with.

i didn't grow up in the friendliest neighborhood. fights were common and not always the innocent schoolyard type.

ive had knives, guns, bats, and broken bottles pulled on me. been shot at, stabbed, hit with heavy objects... and not one single night in the hospital to show for it. maybe not so near death... but i still feel a lil' lucky. i think it was Churchill that said "there is nothing more exhilarating than being shot at with no results." its true.

when i was very young my brother & i were riding with our grandma. she was taking us home after a week out on the farm. as we left the farm she stopped the vehicle and said "something ain't right" and no sooner had she said that the road in front of us washed away in a flash flood. it was scary. it was like this giant hole in the earth opened up and swallowed the road. it would have probably killed all three of us.

i remember her knowing something was about to happen scared me more than the prospect of being washed away in a flood.

once someone came at me with a knife... from behind. i didn't know it was happening, had no warning to my recollection. for some strange reason i just promptly turned around & took the knife away just as it was about to go into my back. i was kind of in shock after that, not knowing why this kid wanted to stab me or how it was that i didn't get stabbed. it gave me a weird fuzzy feeling so i went right home instead of staying for the party. some party huh?

this other kid & i ... one day we go to an amusement park for one reason or another we couldn't get in. so we decide to sit, have a smoke & think this thing through. while doing so i noticed a car circling the parking lot. it gave me a fucked up feeling. sure enough it turns towards us. i'm thinkin' no way this is happening. right out of a movie. i tell my friend to run. he wants to hang around & ask why... so i yell at him to run, then the car speeds up and turns as it approaches us, it turns so that the passenger side is now facing us and the passenger is hanging out of the window and aiming a pistol at us. not sure if he actually got any shots off... blood pumping fast and pounding in the eardrums is deafening, & i didn't hang around to find out. we lost them fast by hiding & splitting up. they weren't half as smart as they were dangerous. the guy i was with said they fired a few shots.

but no bright lights at the end of a tunnel or ghostly figures telling me to 'go back'. i guess you gotta actually die for that to happen.