Angels of Grief, Comfort & Hope
Angels of Grief, Comfort & Hope
By Kermie Wohlenhaus, PhD
www.KermieWohlenhaus.com
Angels of Grief
“We are always, always with you, especially in the depths of grief.”
- Angels
All angels have specific jobs to do. There are angels of love, angels of careers, relationships, babies and parents. Angels are assigned to special events. They come to help us celebrate bar and bat mitzvahs, birthdays, anniversaries, weddings. Angels are much closer to us during difficult times, at funerals, in the hospital, care homes, hospice, and standing with the surgeons and nurses during surgery.
Angels are even nearer during times of transition in our lives. Many times transition and transformation begin with a loss of something or somebody: relationship break ups, loss of employment, homes, family and death. A chapter ends and a new one slowly begins to unfold. The most monumental transition of all is when we or someone we love passes from this dimension to the next - death or what the angels call . . . “coming home.”
Very powerful angels assist our souls as we leave this physical plane and proceed to the world of spirit. These angels are a silent presence during the dying process, waiting for the person to be ready to make this final journey of life. They may come hours, days or even weeks as a soul is unhooking from the body setting itself free from their physical anchor. In times of long illness, a lengthy transition process occurs as the cord slowly severs and releases the spirit.
A person in the dying process may see or hear these angels if the angels make themselves noticeable. Even if they wish to be anonymous, they are always present as Divine sentinels giving presence and ease. Our loved ones may tell us they see or hear angels, music, a deceased relative, or friend who may make a short visit and then fade away. Family members often feel a profound peace in the dying person’s room noting that celestial beings are already preparing the way. These are interdimensional encounters and not hallucinations of the dying or grieving. Be assured these visits are very, very real.
In the case of sudden death, angels come at the moment of passing. Always a soul is accompanied by angels to the other side with love and illumination of the path ahead. When they are safely in the company of loved ones and our Creator across this ultimate threshold, angels may leave the soul to explore, meet and greet those who have gone before and then have a much needed rest.
If a soul isn’t willing to let go of the world, people, or places, or if they want to stay connected with the physical plane, there is an angel waiting with them, until the time is right and that being gives their final good-byes and departs to the light. No one is ever alone in this world, even if it feels like it, it just isn’t possible.
Those left behind are never alone either as powerful, compassionate angels attend those who are grieving this great loss. Theses angels hold great storehouses for patience, grace, strength, love, and give abundantly when we are in deepest despair. Many times we are discouraged that we are unable to “feel” this relief because of our pain, but these fountains of nourishing Divine waters of life continue to pour into us and our broken hearts.
The angels of grief often point the way for human aid as well, putting hospice nurses, counselors and chaplains in our path who have special callings and gifts to offer when we are in these darkest nights of the soul. Grief is a threshing floor, grinding us to be moldable into the bread of life. The process is excruciating and we feel more pain then we think humanly possible. But we do live in it and it will crack open our heart so it will hold more and more love. Sorrow will make us pliable into a compassion we didn’t know existed. It will make us grateful for the love, kindness of loved one, friends and strangers. It will deepen us to feel the brush of an angel wing. It will burn us to ashes so we can soar as a Phoenix.
Silently angels are able to meet us in those wells of loneliness when we can’t find our way out and no human touch can. We are lifted slowly each day back into a new light of day, sometimes better than before, for we will be filled with compassion and empathy for those who have and will be traveling this murky path in the future. We now have much to offer from our own trek through grief and beyond.
The angels of grief are honored to be with us and so willing to go to the depths of our despair, to hold us, to coddle our spirit until we are able to stand on our own. They sit with us while we cry, scream out to God “WHY?” and “When will this ever stop hurting?” They are present in those bleakest of times when there seems no hope or light in the world and it seems that there is no end to the pain or suffering. Soothing, calming, and ever present they stay with us day and night, never sleeping or parting from our side.
These are some of the most important angels of the angelic realm. They deal with real, down, and dirty life with us. They are extremely strong and compassionate. These angels help our hearts go on beating even when they are shattered. Angels of grief dim their light to a soft night glow to allow us to slumber from our normal daily duties. When our emotions are so overwhelming that we walk in a daze, just eating enough to survive, showing up for our lives as best we can while walking around with what seems to be canyons of emptiness in our souls; they are there always with us. We tell ourselves that it will pass someday, but for now, we are in it, from our toes to the very top of our heads. Even our hair hurts.
Angels of grief are not the only angels with us at this time, we have many celestial helpers who step up and become closer - supporting us. The closest ones to us who put in a 911 call to those grief angels are our own Guardian Angels. They know us as no other can – only our Guardian Angel and the Divine Itself. They have been through it all with us from birth and will walk with us to our own final destination, returning to our true home of spirit.
We all have Guardian Angels. It is a fact of life. No one comes into this Earth school without at least one being of light that we commonly refer to as our Guardian Angel. They are here to guide, love, protect, commiserate, and love us as we accomplish our soul missions. We have chosen these angels specifically to help us and direct all the other angels we may need throughout our visit here in body.
Guardian Angels love us dearly and unconditionally. They call us their “charge.” They organize synchronicity throughout our lives to help us with what our soul came to learn and to do with a love that knows no bounds. Even though they never leave our side, they may stay anonymous, but they are always, always with us - no matter what. We can’t even send them away, for they only do Divine Will and that unconditional love will never abandon us. Guardian Angels are closest when we are in times of need and especially in our gut-wrenching grief.
Now as we face unbearable sorrow, disappointment, betrayal, loss; as we reassess our spiritual beliefs and restructure to a newer deeper level, the grief angels are immediately called and stepping up to the plate with our Guardian Angel’s blessing. Our Guardian Angels only call in the best for each of us in our time of need. It is true, it is so.
Angels of grief go unscathed where no one dares to go. We didn’t ask for grief, it was sprung upon us like a wild beast, engulfing us to a prison, a black hole within ourselves we didn’t know we were capable of going. They go with us on this journey, they know the way back. When it is time, they will turn on the light of comfort and hope.
Angels of Comfort
“And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.
And when he was at the place, he said unto them, “Pray that ye enter not into temptation.”
And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
Saying, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.”
And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.
And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
Luke 22:39-44
These are great transformative times and only the highest and best angels of comfort will do. They put together support and nurturing for us - a casual smile from a stranger that helps us go on for that next moment - a phone call that we don’t have the strength to return, but the message lets us know we are not physically alone - the flower that is more beautiful than we have ever noticed before. We are grateful for the small things, the ordinary, the mundane now. We can sit for hours looking at a familiar scene, but never before taking the time to really see it and we are comforted by it even though we feel so empty inside.
Grief can open us to a deeper level of living and appreciation, if we but let it. But now, sitting in this pain, we don’t have the opportunity to emotionally get distracted with our lives as before. We have to be still - too tired and lacking initiative to do anything else. We go through the motions of living but then, finally, we are able to just sit . . . in the quiet . . . surrendering to our dark whole sense of loss. But we find that this is a rich time when this quiet time strengthens us. Not only are the angels of comfort to give us ease on our journey, but the power to go on and do what we need to do. From them we get life blood, a transfusion of courage and resiliency we didn’t even know was being offered, but now it quietly fills us.
Animals come forward too with their quiet loving and healing presence. There with us, sleeping near us, looking with big eyes as they sense the magnificent process that is happening inside us. They know, for we call them and our human comforters - angels with skin. We see many angels with bodies now, persons who really know what we are going through and attend to our needs, sometimes without being asked. They just begin to show up out of the blue. Some people will move towards us and others who we thought would be there for us oftentimes move farther away. We allow each person their own process sd they deal with our grief.
Those who come closer share their experiences of loss and we are comforted by them. Support groups that allow us to communicate what we are going through with others who are on the same train of circumstances. They seem to understand as no other can. Look for them, avail yourself to all they have to offer. Sometimes our past friends and support systems just aren’t enough for the new road we are on. It takes courage to show up and ask for help. Taking that risk of the first small step to find the comfort you need, the angels are urging you to grab all the resources you can. Step out the door to find your new friends who are sharing common ground.
We tend to notice angel statues, cards, images in the world that were pretty before, but now take on new purpose. A small token that someone offers reminds us that the angels are near. They are as stuffed toys to a child, giving us a quiet presence that we desperately need, not demanding any of our attention, only there with us, in our pockets, purses or on our night tables.
If we sit quietly, with eyes open, we see the angel’s footprints and even feel their rich focus on us and illuminating the beauty around us in a new way. We may even feel a depth of touch, a knowing there is a presence. But do we dare believe it is true. No matter how brief their touch is, we bathe in the warmth and the ceasing of the pain for a time. The Divine will pick those moments that will fill this need best.
I was in traveling on the train in England, not knowing many people there, and in deep despair from a break up and after a bout with breast cancer. I prayed and surrendered in my seat and looked out at the swiftly moving landscape of Britain’s gloomy winter. At the next stop a friend of mine “happened” to step into my car on that particular train and sit across from me as I fell into her arms crying. God’s earth angel walked on the train that day, just when I needed it most.
So how do we access the angels of comfort at this time and pull in their energy, love and light? Sit in silence, in the darkness, in the shadow, surrender and allow those wings to engulf you, to shield from the storm, to stop the panic and rest from the turmoil. Allow the pain, just stop moving and sit silently to pray and look for things you have never seen before. Float on their wings for awhile. Allow their buoyancy to lift you up effortlessly.
Many modern angel books retell personal stories of human encounters with angels of comfort just in the nick of time - there they were. They may come in the shape of a dog, a bird, a funny little man, a very wise woman, or one of the only friends you know walking on a train in a foreign country.
A true angel encounter is when angels assume physical bodies. They have a different essence about them. They come out of nowhere, deliver the message or assistance and leave without a trace. You will know in your inner being that you had an angel visitation. Believe it to be true.
Most times angels do not take physical form for us to see and hear with our physical senses, but their presence will be unmistakable soft and kind in an intuitive way. A warmth will pour over us, filling us with ease and peace, from out of nowhere there is deep serenity.
In our hour, moment, or year of need, angels are always there for us. We may not see them, they sometimes are so close that we don’t feel their comfort. But be assured, they are always there.
The poem “Footprints in the Sand” talks about one set of footprints when there were two before. That was a sign that we were being carried, not abandoned.
Angels always do Divine Will, which is the highest and best way for all involved. Always. To boost faith in the unseen, look back at events in your lives that didn’t really look significant or blessed at the time, but seeing it from the perspective of the future, we see that it was the best solution to our prayers. Yes, our prayers were answered in the most amazing of ways.
Again, the most comforting of all angels are our Guardian Angels. Rest in your Guardian Angel’s arms or on their lap and allow them to stroke your hair, calm your mind and fill you with peace. Hold their hand as you go through difficult tasks, allow others to help whenever possible. See how strangers appear who don’t even know what you are going through, offering a helping hand for no reason. Watch our broken hearts and spirits heal, mending one stitch, one day and one moment at a time.
As the angels remind me daily, all is well, all is, indeed, well. Breathe in this affirmation - Light and laughter - Hope and faith. It is yours to receive, open that shattered heart to take it in and sooth the wound. The pain will lessen with each prayer and stoke. All is well, all is well.
Angels of Hope
“Hope is a ray of sunshine breaking through the clouds after a storm. Faith is knowing there are more where that one came from.”
- Linda Poindexter
When it is time, the clouds will part and the sun will return, the angels of hope are forever spreading the light of hope throughout the Universe. What joy they have to transform the world and bring such important energy when it is needed the most. They see when someone or a situation has received their hope-ray as light expands and breaks through the dome of darkness after a long siege of stormy weather. The light of the angels of hope announce to the world, it is a new day and it is here and the darkness will now begin to pass revealing a washed and bright dawn.
Angels of hope are some of the brightest of all angels – they ride on their beautiful beams of light that suddenly appear on the horizon and spread to encompass all creation. This stream of hope comes only after the struggles and patience of the dark terror of the night. Only after the storm has passed and calm is again regained and clear thinking and a direction is freely given. Then as if walking out of a cave of shelter from the horrible night, struggle and cold, all is new. There is hope because you didn’t give up, kept moving forward, the staying alive in the unbearable. It is the resurrection that happens after the death. Our grief changes into a new normal which is so beautiful compared to what we have gone through not so very long ago. Can we dare to hope? YES! It is the gift of the angels. Just hold on to the rope of light, sing the songs, for the threshing is almost over in order to bring about a new creation in us.
“Hope Springs Eternal” is not an empty cliché. It is universal truth. Even a thread of hope is a place to start recovery to lead to the wide road to newness and light. You are reborn into this new, wonderful world again.
When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."
~Author Unknown
“Once you choose hope, anything's possible.”
~Christopher Reeve
Hope is faith holding out its hand in the dark.
~George Iles
“Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come.”
~Anne Lamott
Yes, hope can be a choice, a thin choice into a world that would have us believe the opposite - that all is hopeless, despair, no chance this will change or get better. It can be a choice, an imaginary affirmation that seems useless and full of fantasy at first, but gains strength and begins trains of circumstances down the track to a new destination. Hope is full of wonder, amazement and breath.
It takes a risk sometimes to believe in hope. It may have been in a message given from someone else who chooses to live in hope rather than fear and grief, who just got tired of the same gray bleakness of the grief and needed to move on to a lighter, positive and life-filled direction. Grief had ruled us for so long, and we have had such intimacy with it, familiarity that the idea of hope almost brings up guilt that we should not feel better in any way that it may somehow say that our lose is invalid or not as bad as it is. No it is terrible, but we have the right to move on to something better if we were to live, and hope is the way out of our dark caverns.
Follow the ray of hope, it will lead to the light of life. An angel is holding the flicker of flame for each of us to show us the way back to rebirth. Take the risk, be brave, and let your heart ride the boat of wishful hope of the Divine.
“God puts rainbows in the clouds so that each of us – in the dreariest and most dreaded moments – can see a possibility of Hope.”
- Maya Angelou
Kermie Wohlenhaus, Ph.D. is an author and angelologist who has written many angel books including How to Talk and Actually Listen to Your Guardian Angel, The Complete Reference to Angels in the Bible and her award winning Shopping with the Virgin Mary. For further information: www.KermieWohlenhaus.com