When my children were very young, my mother began to lose her 7 year battle with cancer. Some time before she passed I had a dream one night. In the dream I myself was given a terminal diagnosis. As I stood on the street outside of a doctors office, I was transported through what I would say were each of the stages of acceptance of one's imminent death. Anger, fear denial -finally arriving at acceptance. As I looked up to the overcast sky, I saw that the sun was a bright white orb behind the cloud cover. It began to grow larger until a beam of light shone through and down toward me. In the light, many prisms sparkled creating a holographic effect. The beam seemed to illuminate life behind the veil of our earthly reality. Behind the curtain of the world around me, I could see loved ones who'd crossed over, milling about. Watching us as though through a two-way mirror. Nothing to be sad about, as they were just backstage of the show. Playing cards and passing the time until our arrival. I awoke with a profound sense that I'd been given a gift of awareness about life and death. 6 months later my mom passed away. I had great comfort because of that dream but I missed my mother terribly. Was she proud of me? Did she agree with my decisions? Wrought with sadness that my children would not have their grandmother. On one overcast day where just like in my dream, the sun was a bright white orb behind the cloud cover, I was silently asking myself these questions while driving with my family. From the backseat of the car came my 4 year old daughter E's voice. "Mommy, do you know who told me to look at that sun?" "Nana did. Just now." Whenever the sky is overcast and the sun can be seen patiently waiting on the other side, I remember she's just playing cards, waiting for our arrival.