Bonita E NDE

Experience Description

I had returned from surgery. After being rolled to my recovery room, I was told that my C-section was successful and that I had a nine pound, 24 inch long boy. Some time afterwards, I suddenly realized that I was looking down on myself as I lay in bed. Being a person who tends to analyze most situations before making a conclusion about a situation, I hovered above myself. As I looked down on myself, I said, 'Oh, I have to lose some weight.' It was then that I realized that it is impossible for people to see themselves in three dimensions. Therefore, if I could see myself in all three dimensions at a time, I would have to be outside of my body. I reasoned, that if I were outside of my body, then I'd have to be dead. This worried me greatly. I wondered who was going to take care of my baby. And what about my mother? This would break her heart.

Suddenly, I felt a change in my body temperature. It was a warmth that I had never felt before. It was a perfect temperature. For a few minutes, I worried over what would happen without me and then suddenly I thought, 'Oh, they'll work it out.' It was then that I found myself in the tunnel. The tunnel was a bizarre experience because I was lying flat on my back like someone on a stretcher, except there was no stretcher. I was heading feet first to my destination. There were other people traveling with me. No one was speaking. All of us were traveling in the same direction and in the same manner. No one was speaking.

I came through the portal and I was standing in a beautiful forest. A woman yelled a 'hello' to me and I responded enthusiastically. However, I found this amazing because I did not know her as far as I could tell. Then I thought, 'If I'm in heaven then I want to see Jesus.' Just then, two women passed by. I asked them where I could find Jesus.

Their conversation went something like this as they addressed each other:

'That's the first thing they all ask,' the first woman said to the other.

'They're always in a hurry,' the other woman responded.

However, they kept on walking so I thought I'd better start searching for myself. In the distance I saw a man who was wearing a hooded robe and sitting on a large rock. At first, I wondered if he was Jesus. I never did get to see his face. As I got closer, I didn't have to ask him who he was because I knew.

'Would you like to stay here?' he asked.

'No,' I answered.

'Why?' he asked.

'Because I am not really here. I'm in the hospital having a baby and I have to take care of my child.'

He told me I could return. Suddenly, I was shot through that tunnel at lightning speed. I supposed when I finally got back to my senses some days later, that, the bolt must have been the defibrillator.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: March 31,1969

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes While under general anesthesia. Clinical death (cessation of breathing or heart function) I believe my heart stopped, post operation. I was in the recovery room when I died.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Entirely pleasant

The experience included: Out of body experience

Did you feel separated from your body? No I clearly left my body and existed outside it

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? More consciousness and alertness than normal I knew that I did not know the lady who so enthusiastically said 'hello' to me. I did not recognize her as a deceased relative. However the other two ladies, I had a feeling were related to me.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? Considering the situation, I was definitely aware of what had happened and was able to analyze the situation.

Were your thoughts speeded up? No

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? No

Were your senses more vivid than usual? No

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. My reasoning monitored my vision and my conclusions. I knew I had to do something to get back to my infant. I couldn't go off the deep end over it.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. It was normal. I had no fear, no apprehension about being there. It was a place of rest. I did not feel separated from my body or my spirit while in the new environment.

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere? No

The experience included: Tunnel

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? Yes I've marked 'Happiness' for question 14. However, I really felt an overwhelming peace.

The experience included: Presence of deceased persons

Did you see any beings in your experience? No

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Yes I believe the first two women were related to me. The one woman I saw on my arrival is, I now know, an angel. I saw her again in a dream. She came to me and re-introduced herself. She took me up and let me see what was going to happen to earth as it is ending. I was so overwhelmed I cried and cried, because the people who were most victimized were children. She showed me the number of children she had to collect each day. Amazingly, in the dream, these children were wearing their national dress so I could identify the countries from where they came. I remember her saying, 'I collect these children every day'. From above we moved over the world. Young women were being snatched off the street and raped; children were being killed. The most awful, of them all, was that in a subway toilet a man had raped a two-month-old baby and left it bleeding on the floor. She looked at me and said, 'Now, you know what you have to do.' I had this experience in 1985. I cried and screamed so loudly, I woke myself up. Ever since that time, I have been working with young people and children. I teach them to read write and more importantly 'think.'

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? No

Did you see an unearthly light? Yes It's a beautiful glowing light, but not as is often outrageously depicted in movies. A light brings with it a feeling of safety and well-being. It is more like a glow.

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? No

What emotions did you feel during the experience? I was very calm. The environment was peaceful and I felt no fear whatsoever, with the exception that I needed to get back to my baby.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Incredible peace or pleasantness

Did you have a feeling of joy? Happiness

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? I felt no longer in conflict with nature

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? No

Did scenes from your past come back to you? No

Did scenes from the future come to you? Scenes from the world's future This, I explained, happened to me some years later.

Did you come to a border or point of no return? I came to a definite conscious decision to return to life When I arrived, my soul purpose was to get back to my baby. Mothers will turn down heaven in preference for the safety and oversight of their child. My job wasn't even half done at 29. When I asked to come back, I asked to live long enough to see my child grown and able to care for himself. My child was 48 years old this April. I can only say that when the Father gives, he gives with both hands and I have thanked him every day for 48 years.

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What importance did you place on your religious/spiritual life prior to your experience? Moderately important to me

What was your religion prior to your experience? Do not know I believe there is a Creator, but I think the rules and regulations which extend beyond the Ten Commandments are a figment of some people's imagination. In some cases it is used for their own economic well being.

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? No

What importance do you place on your religious/spiritual life after your experience? Greatly important to me

What is your religion now? No comment As stated above

Did your experience include features consistent with your earthly beliefs? Content that was entirely consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience I am a very pragmatic person. I don't go for the airy-fairy stuff. I believe there is a God. I also believe that some of us begin as early as the cradle in talking to him. I believe he shapes our understanding and gives people specific gifts, which are to be used to make the world better. This is what I believe I discovered during my time there.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes I have learned how to look at what people say and what they actually do. Many of us on earth are so influenced by what people say that we don't look at what they do. We need to take a serious look at what is being done. In highly developed countries, the emphasis is on how things appear. Does this look good, does s/he look good? We judge the value of things on how they look. While in the Third World countries, people who are the poorest share the largest portions of what they have with other needy people. What happened to the fat, rich countries of the world?

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? I encountered a definite being, or a voice clearly of mystical or unearthly origin I definitely spoke with the one I had come to see. I could not see his face, but his voice was warm and he understood my anguish.

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? No

Did you encounter or become aware of any beings who previously lived on earth who are described by name in religions (for example: Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha, etc.)? Yes I believe the two ladies who were saying, 'They always want to see Jesus' were related to me on my great-grandmother's side because they looked a lot like her.

During your experience, did you gain information about premortal existence? No

During your experience, did you gain information about universal connection or oneness? No

Did you believe in the existence of God prior to your experience? God definitely exists

During your experience, did you gain information about the existence of God? Yes Because I was told, I could go back and take care of my baby, which I did until he was grown and he is now 48 years old. God definitely exists.

Do you believe in the existence of God after your experience? God definitely exists

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Yes But it was later in the dream when the angel told me who she was and what I had to do.

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are meaningful and significant

During your experience, did you gain information about the meaning of life? No

Did you believe in an afterlife prior to your experience? An afterlife definitely exists

Do you believe in an afterlife after your experience? An afterlife definitely exists No

Did you fear death prior to your experience? I moderately feared death

Do you fear death after your experience? I do not fear death

Were you fearful living your life prior to your experience? Not fearful in living my earthly life

Were you fearful living your life after your experience? Not fearful in living my earthly life

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are meaningful and significant

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant after your experience? Are meaningful and significant

Did you gain information about how to live our lives? No

During your experience, did you gain information about life's difficulties, challenges and hardships? Yes But it was in the dream, which followed some years later.

Were you compassionate prior to your experience? Greatly compassionate toward others

During your experience, did you gain information about love? No

Were you compassionate after your experience? Greatly compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? Large changes in my life Well after the second visitation, I got busy, went to university, and attained a Ph.D. in Development Studies, which has a central focus on the conditions in Third World countries. I lived overseas for approximately 23 years after that and I am acutely aware that I see and feel things about the human condition that many people don't see.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? Uncertain I don't know. I never did waste any time with people who insisted on going in the wrong direction. Some people find themselves in difficulty because they just find it impossible to walk the line. Personally, as my mother used to say, 'I just look at them.'

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? No

How accurately do you remember the experience in comparison to other life events that occurred around the time of the experience? I remember the experience as accurately as other life events that occurred around the time of the experience. I don't think I will ever forget this experience. A person doesn't have a NDE every day. Nor, do many people get to come back. When I came back, I realized that I have to do something worthwhile with my life. Many people just slip and slop through their lives. However when I stumble on the brink of losing my life, I realize its value. Everything on earth and everything in nature has a purpose. Even non-living things have a purpose. Chairs are for sitting, and many things we take for granted. The best advice I can give to others, from my experience, is that if you do not have a purpose, you need to find it because one day, you may be asked, 'so what did you do down there to help alleviate some of the suffering you knew existed?'

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes I can sense crooked people. I have a greater ability of persuasion, which I always use to turn a person in the right direction. I absolutely detest lying and I count the number of lies I have told each year. Last year was four. So far this year, I believe there was none.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? Well when the angel made the second visit and after having shown what is to become of our children, I have tried to dedicate myself to helping children do the right thing, make the right choice and steer away from what is wrong, no matter how attractive it may seem.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes Back in 1969, nobody believed these things.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience? No

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened? Experience was definitely real I never disbelieved what happened to me for a second and I still don't and never will.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real I had a refresher experience some years later. I have had several experiences of this type while awake, and in perfect health. One I experienced when I was in Africa and it was no dream. I found that rather difficult to believe, but that's another story and was not a near death experience. Once God gets hold of me, he does not let go easily. He has my full attention.

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? Yes You'll probably find this hard to believe, but I've written it up in my autobiography. I took my son with me to Africa. During my time there, I ran into financial hardship because the country I was in had only recently attained its independence. As a result, people were going in and out of business so quickly, it was like coming in through a revolving door. One day while walking to work at a job that was about to go out of business, I broke down and cried and I said, 'God you have got to send me an angel. I can't make it on my own any longer. Now if you send me one, don't send any of those big angels who can stand with one foot in the ocean and the other on land because the minute he shows up and I see him, I will be John in Revelation and I will just die’. I continued walking to work, when suddenly a man in an all-white outfit from Nigeria stopped me and asked if he could speak to me. He was human-size. I wondered what he wanted. To make a long story short, that evening I went to see him. He told me he had been sent by God. Amazingly, I did not doubt him. He told me all about my life and whenever I tried to tell him something, he would say, 'I know.' He not only told me about my life, but he told me about my son, which I had not even told him anything about my son.

Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experience? I cannot say for certain, but I would think that anyone who has had one of these experiences has probably had a few others afterward, while they were alive. Many I am sure are afraid to say anything about it because they're afraid people will think they are crazy.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? It would be nice if you would ask people to tell you about any follow up experiences they had and whether the same people were in both.