Originally Posted by jrebel7
Hi there Stringer!
Certain personalities are just more sensitive to things around us. I have had many incidents in my life but the following is one that I find difficult to shake or understand because it is within my belief, that when a person dies, they do go on from here and don't hang around!!! We ran around with a couple. Both were very likeable but while the man would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it, he trusted no one. He would never turn his back on a person. He always carried a pistol and back then (several years back), I am not sure he had a firearms carry permit or not. One time he picked up a hitch hiker (as he stated, he sure hated to see some one stranded) and he had his leather jacket on, the passenger began to reach into his pocket. Our friend, had his hand inside his jacket as they traveled and just casually, cocked back the hammer as the other guy reached into his jacket. The conversation never stopped but the passenger, very carefully and slowly, pulled his hand back out and sat with his hands on his legs, in the open from then on. I said all of this to sort of preface the ending. Time passed, the couple divorced but my friend always loved this man. They married really young had two children, grandchildren but as things often do, fell apart and they parted. He remarried later, had retired from his life long job and purchased a little grocery/gasoline station down by one of many lakes. Word came that our friend had been killed. Shock barely touched what we felt and no understanding of what happened. As details emerged, a young boy was arrested, just walking down the country road. Our friend had given he and his family groceries when they were out of money many times and had extended credit for gasoline and gave gasoline for their truck when needed. Our friend never turned his back on anyone as I stated yet, this one day, the young guy came in and our friend walked to the back of the store to get something for the guy and the guy stabbed our friend to death then simply walked away. No drugs were involved, he took no money, had blood on him. We had been through our own trauma during this time and wanted to be there for the family as they had been for us. I went to court everyday in another county. There was never a change of expression on the young mans face as it was told what had happened. He received the death penalty and has been put to death.
Ok, I am a stickler for details and journaling, as you can see! I am wordy, forgive, I digress. Okay, one evening, after going through all the trial, etc., I had written in my journal on the events of the day. It was winter and I was cold and was standing in front of our furnace as I reread my entries to make sure I had not made mistakes or had not left details out. As I stood there, I not only felt someone was standing behind me but saw A.J. standing just behind my right shoulder, saw his face as he peered over my right shoulder reading my journal. I turned around quickly and no image, nothing. Being a person, as I said of believing as I do, I didn't share this for a bit. Later, my friend, his ex-wife shared with me that she had seen him ascending her stairs inside her townhouse apartment and on two other occasions, saw him in her house. (He had never lived in that house with her as they had divorced long time past). It was almost like he was trying to grasp what had happened. The question that will always remain with us is why did A.J. turn his back on someone, this one time, when he never had before in all the years we had known him. Sweet man, giving man, distrusting man, except this one time.