Praise the Lord for new beginnings! My dear friend, Clyde, died of cancer on December 18. He had been such an anchor in my life this past year especially–I could call him any hour of the day or night when the pain was too great, and he was a wonderful listener and truth-teller. Then Caroline Fendley, another precious friend, died December 20 after a most valiant struggle with a stem cell transplant. And our little son, Gavin, died on December 22 (years ago). As a result, that week before Christmas was a terribly difficult one for me, as I struggled with even more “goodbyes.”
Several times in the weeks before he died, Clyde told me that when he got to Heaven, he would send me a butterfly to let me know he was O.K. Each day since, I had been looking and looking for a butterfly. On New Year’s Eve, I had decided not to walk on the beach as I usually do in the late afternoon but to take a nap instead as I had worked really late the night before. At the last minute, however, I just felt compelled to walk because that is always the time that I feel closest to the Lord.
After I had walked about a mile, I glanced up into the sky and there, covering nearly half the sky, was a PERFECT silhouette of a butterfly. Oh, how my heart rejoiced! Not only were the tears running down my cheeks, but I had a huge smile in my heart — Clyde was always a bit of a contrarian, and while I had been looking for a butterfly with its wings outstretched, he chose to send me something completely different, a silhouette! ……..And how very precious that he chose to send it on New Year’s Eve, a time for all of us of new beginnings.
I could not wait to get home and call his children and Caroline’s husband and my children and tell them that WITHOUT A DOUBT there IS a Heaven, and that Clyde and Caroline and Charlie and Gavin are just fine — and so are all the loved ones of each one of you. I have had several signs from loved ones in the past, but somehow this message from the Lord came at a time I desperately needed the affirmation that God IS there, He is watching over us each moment, and He will take us lovingly home when our time on earth is finished.
© Barbara Glanz Communications. All Rights Reserved.
Barbara Glanz Biography
A member of the prestigious Speaker Hall of Fame and one of fewer than 700 Certified Speaking Professionals worldwide, Barbara Glanz, CSP, CPAE, works with organizations to improve morale, retention and service and with people who want to rediscover the joy in their work and in their lives. She is the first speaker on record to have spoken on all 7 continents and in all 50 states. Known as "the business speaker who speaks to your heart as well as to your head," Barbara is the author of twelve books including The Simple Truths of Service Inspired by Johnny the Bagger®, CARE Packages for the Workplace, and 180 Ways to Spread Contagious Enthusiasm™. Voted "best keynote presenter you have heard or used" by Meetings & Conventions Magazine, Barbara uses her Master’s degree in Adult Learning to design programs that cause behavior change. She lives and breathes her personal motto: “Spreading Contagious Enthusiasm™” and can be reached at bglanz@barbaraglanz.com and www.barbaraglanz.com.
