It was in 2000 that the first 'warning' about Nick came.. I was emailing him about a cheque (he had already sad it was 'in the post') for a trip I was organizing that I had invited him to. All of a sudden I couldn't see the computer for a minute or two but saw him, as in a picture I once took of him on one of our Union picket lines...

The difference here being that there was a golden light being shone over him in the picture... An accompanying voice then said softly "Nick wont live to see his next birthday.." (he was a Pisces) My immediate reaction was to say "WHAT????".. then the voice - a softly spoken male voice, repeated the statement, emphasizing certain syllables "NICK WONT live to see his next BIRTHDAY" it repeated... Stunned as to what I had just heard, I replied 'what are you talking about? of course he will...."   then the vision finished. 'what on EARTH was that all about?' I thought.   Nick was a diabetic but he looked after himself although was partial to a drop of beer or three. He would 'compensate' for this with extra insulin shots.

It was a few weeks later that I was cat sitting for a friend who had four cats in all to look after. There was Murphy, a ginger tom, Bella and Captain - sibling tabbies and Tiger, a rather large tabby. It was strange as Tiger had always been, in spite of being my a 'cat person', a bit stand-offish and aloof with me.

On certain nights I would stop over and enjoy my friends luxurious bed linens that she had so considerately bought whilst she worked in America.   It was one of these nights, a Tuesday in November that I had the most bizarre dream.... I dreamt of a man (in my dream, my first thought was that he was an angel as he had taken the role of a messenger) who was standing with a powerful bright light behind him. He was casually dressed but I could really only make out a silhouette with a few added details. He said softly "Tiger has got seven days left to live..." I, once more in disbelief, found myself questioning him... "WHAT???? what are you talking about???" I asked him, to which he replied with that familiar emphasis on certain words and syllables "TIGER has got SEVEN days left to live" ...not 'tiger has ONLY got..' or 'poor tiger...' but that matter of fact statement with the intonations that seemed so strangely haunting and familiar and yet I couldn't fathom why.  I was about to gasp when I was woken up by a loud meowing in my ear... It was Tiger, on the bed - on top of me - meowing as if to purposely wake me up!   That night tiger stayed close to me.

I telephoned my friends sister, a vet and who happened to be looking after Tiger, and asked how he was and what state of health he was in (thinking, 'not loosing a cat - not on MY watch!') but she reassured me that although he was still an overweight moggie, he was actually in the peak of health.  Mystified I carried on cat sitting regardless each day and night, keeping a close eye on Tiger. I even brought friends with me closer to 'the time' as I didn't want to be on my own should I find....

The seventh day arrived soon enough and passed without incident. The eighth day arrived and Tiger was still in the peak of rude health... So being somewhat boggled about the moggie, I couldn't help but ask myself WHAT was that dream all about?

With things gradually drifting back to normal, that Wednesday I started to ring around for outstanding cheques for that trip that was coming up. Nick still hadn't paid up (the cheque still being in the post)  and decided to phone him at work where he had his own extension.  However when I did call, a woman answered his phone instead of him, which was very unusual to say the least...  I asked for Nick and she said that he wasn't there. I asked when he would be back at his desk thinking he was at lunch or similar and she replied that he wasn't coming back... I asked her again, but this time getting a bit flustered whilst talking to the girl, insisting that I spoke to him. Then came the  reply...

"I'm sorry but you can't speak to him, I'm afraid he's dead..."

At first I thought this to be a joke or a wind up and a pretty poor one at that.  She repeated what she had said but in spite of hardly believing my ears, I asked what had happened to which she suggested I talk to his parents... I agreed I should send a card and  so she gave me their new address...

It was then that I started to walk around the room in circles, hardly having taken in what I had heard.. I just didn't know what to, but thought.. ' shall I light a candle for him?', and as I desperately searched around for a candle to light, I spied some ornamental ones that I had on a shelf, four of them, lined up together... I thought then, 'No, I shall light FOUR...' then I thought 'B*****X light ALL of them'!  And that's what I did, but not before the words of the poem had been written down... it took all of two minutes.

I sent the poem to his parents by way of a sympathy card and his mother phoned me up. She told me that he had gone home from work early on the Thursday as he wasn't feeling well. After a brief rest he felt better so went to the pub. He did not go to work on the Friday. On the Saturday he was expected to referee a London based American Football game but never turned up. His friends called around at his place but there was no answer. They phoned his parents who, being equally mystified, couldn't understand why he was not about. They suggested to his friends that they try an call him very early on the Monday morning before he left for work.  This they did but there was still no answer... His friends contacted the police in the hope that they would break down the door but the police said that this was something  that (for some reason or other) they could not do. So, his friends returned to Nick's flat and broke in themselves.

They found Nick lying dead on the floor.  Calling the police and ambulance, Nick was pronounced dead on the Monday. The seventh day after the warning I was given. This dream was not about Tiger after all, but about Nick (Nick was also a cat person), and Tiger was the instrument or conduit that was used to let me know that something was a foot and someone close was about to pass ...

A Psychic lady spoke to me a few days later, telling me I had just lost someone (and  there was me thinking I had hidden my grief so well...), but she also said that I knew in advance... weeks ago in fact. I thought back to the vision and the gentle softly spoken male voice... and then the same voice in the dream. The Angel???? .  She said I also knew who had told me or should do...

That got me thinking. WHO did both Nick and I know who was in spirit? ONE person only came to mind. A mutual friend, Ross, who had died (aged 28) a few years earlier. Nick came with me to HIS funeral as my support... and Tiger the cat, it seemed, was Ross's instrument.

It has long been believed in many cultures that Angels are messengers from a higher or divine being. Their appearance varies rom culture to culture. What I DONT think is that they are all bright and golden and beautiful with wings and teeth to match. I do think however that they are spirits and sometimes PEOPLE in spirit who by some quirk of fate or divine judgment are now performing a task or service by delivering messages to those who need to hear them.

So why Ross? Well in this life he was a practicing Satanist and a member of the Temple of Set. So why him? I believe that however misguided one's beliefs may be they will always have a chance to make up for things by doing a kind of spiritual 'community service' . In this case Ross, who I always believed to be a fundamentally good bloke - if, perhaps, a little 'misguided' - was a messenger; an angel doing his community service by being a sort of cosmic postman. The voice sounded like his and the angel spoke with the same intonations and inflections in the speech that Ross did...

Thinking on this and other events of a similar nature, I do feel that for the most part, however ethereal angels may be, straight males will tend to see female type angels, straight females will see male ones, the gays will see their own whilst bi receivers will see who is most appropriate at the time.  I have encountered angles twice now and both times they have been male... and both have worked through cats.

These words are dedicated to my friend Nick who passed in 2000...
However, it is for everyone.