A Classic Childhood NDE by Ann Seliskar
06 06
Well, the voltage went through my body for about four minutes, at which time my father turned off the main electrical switch in the house. I then fell almost to the ground, while a neighbor who had heard the commotion came running and caught me. He handed me to my mother who carried me into the house where my father performed cpr on me and I revived.
In the meanwhile, I remember my spirit leaving my body through my head and traveling straight upward to an open tunnel, which was dark, but not scary. I was traveling at a very fast speed and after a while the tunnel became transparent. I saw specks of twinkling light and other spirits traveling in tunnels parallel to mine, some upward and some downward. Next I reached the end of my tunnel and began to free float in one spot in space. I felt this incredible feeling of unconditional love permeating my body. It was something so wonderful that I had never experienced before or since. I looked around and saw the wide expanse of the universe all around me. On my left was the figure of my recently deceased grandmother, wearing a flowered housedress, just like I remembered her on Earth. She spoke telepathically to me, saying, It is not your time. You have a mission. You must go back.
Then directly in front of me was a huge cloud of light. A kind, loving voice spoke telepathically to me from this cloud. The voice was indistinguishable as male or female and said, The choice is yours. You must decide. I knew at that instant that whatever decision I made would be okay. I didnt miss my family or have any regrets about my life on earth. I was perfectly happy to just stay there for all eternity, but my grandmothers comment had made me realize that there was more that needed to be accomplished in my life.
At that instant I was swooped away back down the tunnel and soon hovered above my ten-year-old body. I thought, how could I ever fit into that tiny body? Finally I remember waking up with my father leaning over me and my family staring at me. The doctor soon arrived at our house and indicated that I was a very lucky girl. I only have one scar on my hand where I had grabbed the electrical wire. I suffered no brain damage or other burns or ill effects. So, I believe that I must have also received a healing, because the normal outcome from such a jolt for such a long period would have been quite severe.
Aftereffects:
You asked about after effects and as you personally know they are still evolving, even after these 41 years since my experience. They are: precognition of some events, dreams that are prcognitive, sensitivity to people's energy, and once being a channel. Often I know that something is about to happen (within 24 hours) especially with someone I love, but don't know what. For example in 1963 the day before my 15-year-old brother drowned, I had this compulsion to tell him that I loved him, which isn't normal for a 13-year-old sister. That day I appreciated being with him every second and was feeling enormous love towards him. Also two years ago,the day before my husband was fired from his job, I was very prayerful and knew something bad related to his job was about to happen. I kept getting the message that everything was going to be okay.. Three months later my husband got a better job and was much happier.
An incident happened two and 1/2 years ago. I had just left the health club where I had worked out, when I felt my feet planted firmly on the floor and Iwas unable to move. I felt this warm comforting sensation travel through my body from my head to my feet and then leave me. My mother-in-law, whom I was very close to, had been on her death bed when I had visited her the previos week in Ohio. Although I was in New Jersey, I felt her spirit go through me when she passed from this realm, When I returned home fifteen minutes later there were cardinals outside at my birdfeeder and the answering machine on my phone was blinking. Cardinals are the state birds of Ohio and I had never seen them in New Jersey before. I wept knowing that my mother-in-law was gone. After a few minutes I listened to my answering machine and it was my brother- in-law confirming that she had indeed passed at the time I was leaving the health club.! These are but a few example of what my life has been like for the past 41 years since my nde.
I also had an out of body experience when I had my tonsils out at age 7. The ether was too strong and I immediately left my body and was watching the operation above the light fixture. When I returned to my body I was hysterical and cried continuously all night long. I don't ever remember being so upset.
When I was about eight-years-old, I almost drowned. I was swimming in a lake all by myself and I was returning to the step from a raft in the middle of the lake. I was exhausted and couldn't take another stroke. I remember going under the water.. Immediately I started to have a life review. Since I was so young there wasn't that much to see. The next thing I remeber is grabbing hold of the ladder. I was too far away from it before, about 5 feet away, but suddenly I was able to touch it. My belief is that an angel or some other-worldly being carried me to the ladder, because I was under the water and don't believe that I swam there on my own.
"My Mission in Life"
Now more than forty years after my nde, I look back and I realize that with God's guidance I am accomplishing my mission. I try to submit to God's will in my life and to follow in Jesus' path. With His help I have more or less successfully raised two lovely daughters. My oldest is a senior in high school and is devoted to volunteering. She started a community outreach club in her high school to fill the need for helpers at the local soup kitchen. She is also a lecturer at our church and has led the high school weekend church retreats. Her youngers sister is always trying to help out kids in her school.
My nde showed me how much God loves us unconditionally, and that it is our job to communicate that love to others. I spend a great part of my week doing volunteer work at a nearby mission for recovering adult men addicts. I help teach them computer skills and to prepare for the GED test. But most importantly I talk tothem about Jesus' love for them and how they have agreat opportunity with His help to get their lives back on track.
Their stories are so sad. One 42-year-old man quit school in fourth grade in order to support his mother and several brothers and sisters. He took the bus every day into New York City to work as a shoeshine boy. He thought that his mother was excited to see him return home each day because she loved him, only to discover that all she wanted was the money so she could buy alcohol.
Another man aged 34, used to get beat up and his lunch money stolen every day as a child, when he walked to school. He became a boxer as a teenager so that he could protect himself.
There are forty-two men there with sad stories, but there is a central theme. They all have had difficult lives in the past, but are hopeful. With their addictions behind them, some training at the mission, and God holding their hand, I believe that they will have a chance at a brighter future.
It is my mission to help out where God leads me. I also work as a buddy with a 41-year-oldAIDS client. Her story is so sad, but her courage to live each day is inspirational. The sheer number of her medical problems is daunting. She has the HIV virus, hepatitis C, seizures, diabetes, arthritis, neural palsy, and skin rashes. I am mainly needed for emotional and spiritual support. Several times a week we talk on the phone and I visit her weekly. Loneliness is a major factor in her life. Sadness overwhelms her sometimes when she ponders about her health issues, her children not living with her, and her mother's recent death, and her methadone addiction. I try to be there for her, to talk to her, to hug her and I try to put a positive spin on things. I tell her how much she is loved and needed by her husband, children, family and friends, including me.
We sometimes discuss my nde and what we believe death and what heaven will be like. She is a very spiritual person and I believe that her faith is what has sustained her through the difficulties of life. I reminded her at one of our first get-togethers, that God loves her and has forgiven her, and that she needs to forgive herself.
She has enriched my life just by her presence. Her courage to face each new day with a smile on her face is amazing to me. She has given me so much joy. My initial goal was to be given the opportunity to lighten someone's load. What I have discovered is that the experience has put my own life in perspective.
When you see someone terminally ill, you appreciate your own good health. I can't even begin to imagine what it would feel like to have AIDS; to have family members shun me because they are afraid that they might catch it. To take medicine that has side-effects of nausea, rashes, even death. And then to know that no matter how closely I follow the regimen, that I won't be cured unless a miracle happens.
When you see someone with so many major issues, you appreciate that your problems aren't so bad. I began to ask myself some questions. How could I get around town to do my grocery shopping, etc. without a driver's license? How could I survive without my children under my roof and my care? How could I go to a meth clinic day after day knowing that the addiction is not getting any better and that rehab is too scary to face?
When you see someone with money issues, you learn to appreciate what you have. It makes me wonder, how could I live on a lot less money each month? What would I do at the end of the month when the money has run out and I have little to eat? What does real hunger feel like?
Jesus said, "I was hungry and you fed me....I was naked and you clothed me."
I first expressed my love for my buddy by taking her to the Pompton Lakes Diner. I didn't judge her or ask her how she got the virus; I just saw the need for someone to love her. We started out as strangers, then as buddies, but now as she says, "We are like sisters." We built the relationship on our needs; her need for love and acceptance and my need to give that love to her. What truly amazes me is that she has maintained a sense of humor through it all. My wish for my buddy is that she will find peace.
I have recently returned to college to earn dual degrees in sociology and psychology. I plan to work with recovering addicts and/or AIDS patients when I graduate and continue to get my master's degree. The Lord has put me on this path for a reason and my nde was only the beginning of the journey.
In the meanwhile, I remember my spirit leaving my body through my head and traveling straight upward to an open tunnel, which was dark, but not scary. I was traveling at a very fast speed and after a while the tunnel became transparent. I saw specks of twinkling light and other spirits traveling in tunnels parallel to mine, some upward and some downward. Next I reached the end of my tunnel and began to free float in one spot in space. I felt this incredible feeling of unconditional love permeating my body. It was something so wonderful that I had never experienced before or since. I looked around and saw the wide expanse of the universe all around me. On my left was the figure of my recently deceased grandmother, wearing a flowered housedress, just like I remembered her on Earth. She spoke telepathically to me, saying, It is not your time. You have a mission. You must go back.
Then directly in front of me was a huge cloud of light. A kind, loving voice spoke telepathically to me from this cloud. The voice was indistinguishable as male or female and said, The choice is yours. You must decide. I knew at that instant that whatever decision I made would be okay. I didnt miss my family or have any regrets about my life on earth. I was perfectly happy to just stay there for all eternity, but my grandmothers comment had made me realize that there was more that needed to be accomplished in my life.
At that instant I was swooped away back down the tunnel and soon hovered above my ten-year-old body. I thought, how could I ever fit into that tiny body? Finally I remember waking up with my father leaning over me and my family staring at me. The doctor soon arrived at our house and indicated that I was a very lucky girl. I only have one scar on my hand where I had grabbed the electrical wire. I suffered no brain damage or other burns or ill effects. So, I believe that I must have also received a healing, because the normal outcome from such a jolt for such a long period would have been quite severe.
Aftereffects:
You asked about after effects and as you personally know they are still evolving, even after these 41 years since my experience. They are: precognition of some events, dreams that are prcognitive, sensitivity to people's energy, and once being a channel. Often I know that something is about to happen (within 24 hours) especially with someone I love, but don't know what. For example in 1963 the day before my 15-year-old brother drowned, I had this compulsion to tell him that I loved him, which isn't normal for a 13-year-old sister. That day I appreciated being with him every second and was feeling enormous love towards him. Also two years ago,the day before my husband was fired from his job, I was very prayerful and knew something bad related to his job was about to happen. I kept getting the message that everything was going to be okay.. Three months later my husband got a better job and was much happier.
An incident happened two and 1/2 years ago. I had just left the health club where I had worked out, when I felt my feet planted firmly on the floor and Iwas unable to move. I felt this warm comforting sensation travel through my body from my head to my feet and then leave me. My mother-in-law, whom I was very close to, had been on her death bed when I had visited her the previos week in Ohio. Although I was in New Jersey, I felt her spirit go through me when she passed from this realm, When I returned home fifteen minutes later there were cardinals outside at my birdfeeder and the answering machine on my phone was blinking. Cardinals are the state birds of Ohio and I had never seen them in New Jersey before. I wept knowing that my mother-in-law was gone. After a few minutes I listened to my answering machine and it was my brother- in-law confirming that she had indeed passed at the time I was leaving the health club.! These are but a few example of what my life has been like for the past 41 years since my nde.
I also had an out of body experience when I had my tonsils out at age 7. The ether was too strong and I immediately left my body and was watching the operation above the light fixture. When I returned to my body I was hysterical and cried continuously all night long. I don't ever remember being so upset.
When I was about eight-years-old, I almost drowned. I was swimming in a lake all by myself and I was returning to the step from a raft in the middle of the lake. I was exhausted and couldn't take another stroke. I remember going under the water.. Immediately I started to have a life review. Since I was so young there wasn't that much to see. The next thing I remeber is grabbing hold of the ladder. I was too far away from it before, about 5 feet away, but suddenly I was able to touch it. My belief is that an angel or some other-worldly being carried me to the ladder, because I was under the water and don't believe that I swam there on my own.
"My Mission in Life"
Now more than forty years after my nde, I look back and I realize that with God's guidance I am accomplishing my mission. I try to submit to God's will in my life and to follow in Jesus' path. With His help I have more or less successfully raised two lovely daughters. My oldest is a senior in high school and is devoted to volunteering. She started a community outreach club in her high school to fill the need for helpers at the local soup kitchen. She is also a lecturer at our church and has led the high school weekend church retreats. Her youngers sister is always trying to help out kids in her school.
My nde showed me how much God loves us unconditionally, and that it is our job to communicate that love to others. I spend a great part of my week doing volunteer work at a nearby mission for recovering adult men addicts. I help teach them computer skills and to prepare for the GED test. But most importantly I talk tothem about Jesus' love for them and how they have agreat opportunity with His help to get their lives back on track.
Their stories are so sad. One 42-year-old man quit school in fourth grade in order to support his mother and several brothers and sisters. He took the bus every day into New York City to work as a shoeshine boy. He thought that his mother was excited to see him return home each day because she loved him, only to discover that all she wanted was the money so she could buy alcohol.
Another man aged 34, used to get beat up and his lunch money stolen every day as a child, when he walked to school. He became a boxer as a teenager so that he could protect himself.
There are forty-two men there with sad stories, but there is a central theme. They all have had difficult lives in the past, but are hopeful. With their addictions behind them, some training at the mission, and God holding their hand, I believe that they will have a chance at a brighter future.
It is my mission to help out where God leads me. I also work as a buddy with a 41-year-oldAIDS client. Her story is so sad, but her courage to live each day is inspirational. The sheer number of her medical problems is daunting. She has the HIV virus, hepatitis C, seizures, diabetes, arthritis, neural palsy, and skin rashes. I am mainly needed for emotional and spiritual support. Several times a week we talk on the phone and I visit her weekly. Loneliness is a major factor in her life. Sadness overwhelms her sometimes when she ponders about her health issues, her children not living with her, and her mother's recent death, and her methadone addiction. I try to be there for her, to talk to her, to hug her and I try to put a positive spin on things. I tell her how much she is loved and needed by her husband, children, family and friends, including me.
We sometimes discuss my nde and what we believe death and what heaven will be like. She is a very spiritual person and I believe that her faith is what has sustained her through the difficulties of life. I reminded her at one of our first get-togethers, that God loves her and has forgiven her, and that she needs to forgive herself.
She has enriched my life just by her presence. Her courage to face each new day with a smile on her face is amazing to me. She has given me so much joy. My initial goal was to be given the opportunity to lighten someone's load. What I have discovered is that the experience has put my own life in perspective.
When you see someone terminally ill, you appreciate your own good health. I can't even begin to imagine what it would feel like to have AIDS; to have family members shun me because they are afraid that they might catch it. To take medicine that has side-effects of nausea, rashes, even death. And then to know that no matter how closely I follow the regimen, that I won't be cured unless a miracle happens.
When you see someone with so many major issues, you appreciate that your problems aren't so bad. I began to ask myself some questions. How could I get around town to do my grocery shopping, etc. without a driver's license? How could I survive without my children under my roof and my care? How could I go to a meth clinic day after day knowing that the addiction is not getting any better and that rehab is too scary to face?
When you see someone with money issues, you learn to appreciate what you have. It makes me wonder, how could I live on a lot less money each month? What would I do at the end of the month when the money has run out and I have little to eat? What does real hunger feel like?
Jesus said, "I was hungry and you fed me....I was naked and you clothed me."
I first expressed my love for my buddy by taking her to the Pompton Lakes Diner. I didn't judge her or ask her how she got the virus; I just saw the need for someone to love her. We started out as strangers, then as buddies, but now as she says, "We are like sisters." We built the relationship on our needs; her need for love and acceptance and my need to give that love to her. What truly amazes me is that she has maintained a sense of humor through it all. My wish for my buddy is that she will find peace.
I have recently returned to college to earn dual degrees in sociology and psychology. I plan to work with recovering addicts and/or AIDS patients when I graduate and continue to get my master's degree. The Lord has put me on this path for a reason and my nde was only the beginning of the journey.
