“Welcome home, Alma.”
I hear a warm voice say, peculiarly coming from all around me. Though my eyelids are closed, I can feel a soft radiance enveloping me like a blanket. The perfume of cherry blossoms – reminding me of my auntie – wafts through my nose. My mouth is filled with a taste like honey, making my tongue water. I feel light as air, almost as if I am lying on a cloud. Wherever I am seems to be perfect bliss. I no longer hear the hospital monitors beeping or the sniffles of my concerned family. My family. Where is my family? Maybe it was one of their voices I heard. My eyes shoot open. I am almost blinded by the piercing light that seems to surround me. I sit up and slowly my eyes adjust to the atmosphere of where I sit. I see clouds. The world is covered in clouds. Then, I finally see the voice.
A Man. Standing in front of a golden gate is a Man, drowning in white robes. His expressionless face breaks into a smile, making my heart leap for a reason I can’t quite grasp. Every instinct in me gravitates towards this Man. This Man, whom I’ve never seen before, just stands there, motionless, smiling. Slowly, He moves His arms from their resting position, and reaches them out towards me. His smile is uncontainable. I feel my face lift as I smile back and pick myself up. I begin to eagerly walk towards Him, and our smiles simultaneously widen.
“Alma- you did well. There is nothing to worry about.”
Before I can respond, I am enfolded in an embrace of which I can only describe as inconceivable. All at once, my worries, my memories, my thoughts, my mistakes, and my sickness are all lifted from my heart. Again, I hear:
“Welcome home, Alma.”
I pull myself from the warming encompassment, and take a look at the Man who knows my name. He grabs my hand, and starts towards the glimmering gate in front of us. My smile never fades. He knows my name. I am at a state of what one can only call complete serenity as I traverse into my lifetime with this Man. This Man.
My Heavenly Father.
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Photo Credit: Danny Hahlbohm
