In March 1987 my dad decided one morning to drive to South Texas to visit his mother and do some fishing.  He had asked me to go but I declined to go along because I didn't feel close to his side of the family, so he went alone this particular time.  My dad called me mid morning when he arrived at his mother's house and he said he was getting his fishing gear ready to fish at the river which ran behind her house.  I went to bed that night and awoke a little after midnight from a really bad dream involving my dad.  In the dream I saw him floating among underwater plants.  I awoke and my heart was pounding and I realized I had tears on my face, so I was obviously crying in my sleep.  I was feeling very worried about my dad's welfare and I wanted to call him at his mothers' house but at the same time I knew I would feel foolish I woke everyone up over there over a 'dream'.  So I laid back down in bed, but had a hard time getting back to sleep.  The following morning I was awakened by the ringing of the telephone and I held my breathe as I listened when my mom answered the phone.  I heard her answer the phone, but heard her say nothing else.  I suddenly had a sick feeling of 'knowing'.  I got out of bed and went into the living room where I saw my mom with a shocked expression on her face.  I asked, "It's about daddy, isn't it?"  She said, "He's missing."  I decided to not mention my dream just yet.  Five days later, his body was recovered from the river.  After they recovered my dad from the river, I was looking inside his car and found a roll of quarters that he always kept in the glove box in case he had to make an emergency call from a payphone.  I put the roll of quarters in my pocket and then decided to walk to the river at the last known spot my dad had been fishing at prior to his death.  I stood on the river bank and stared into the water for a long time.  I turned to leave, and then remembered the quarters in my pocket, so I turned back toward the river and pulled out a quarter from my pocket and tossed it into the river and said, "Call home Daddy."  Then I left.  I had forgotten all about the throwing the quarter into the river until two weeks after my dads funeral.  My mom woke one morning and began describing a dream she'd had involving my dad.  She said that she dreamed that the phone had rang and she picked it up and it was my dad on the other end and he told her that he was "going home".  She said during the conversation she was elated at hearing his voice and she kept asking him if he was okay, where was he and when was he coming home.  Each time he would reply and say he was okay and that he was "going" home.  She asked, "Do you mean you're COMING home, right??"  He replied, "Don't worry, I'm okay and I'm going home, please let me hang up so I can go home."  At this point she said she woke up and she was REALLY holding the phone receiver in her hand and she was crying.  Only then did I tell her that I had thrown a quarter into the river and asked daddy to 'call home'.

Was this experience difficult to express in words?

No

Did you ONLY sense an awareness of presence of the deceased without actually seeing, hearing, feeling or smelling them?

Yes

Did you hear the deceased or hear something associated with the deceased?         

No

Did you feel a touch or experience any physical contact from the deceased?         

No

Did you see the deceased?       

Yes

In the dream I saw my dad floating among underwater plants.  He appeared normal except that his eyes were closed and he was just floating with the waters currents.

            How clearly did the deceased appear?            solid

            How much of the deceased did you see?       entire body

            Did the deceased appear or not appear to be the age at which they died?            He was the age that he was at before death.

            How healthy did the deceased appear to be?            He had no infirmities before death

            Is there any possibility what you saw was from any other source present in the surroundings at the time of your experience?           No

Did you smell a distinct smell, scent, fragrance or odor associated with the deceased?  

No

How long did the experience last?      

My dream lasted approximately 45 seconds to 1 minute before I woke up.  I'm unsure of how long my mothers dream lasted with the telephone call.

Was the beginning and end of the experience gradual or more sudden?       

my dream of him underwater began and ending sudden

Could you sense the emotions or mood of the deceased?         

No

Did the deceased give you information you did not previously know? 

I believe that the dream I had of him underwater was a premonition of what had happened earlier in the day.  The following morning when the phone rang to inform us that he was missing, I already had prior knowledge from my dream of what had more than likely happened to him.  So the information from my dream was TRUE.

How do you currently view the reality of your experience?        

Experience was definitely real

          Please explain why you view the reality of your experience as real or not real:  

I believe it was real because it was preparing me for the reality of the situation.

          Was the experience dream like in any way? 

Yes

I was asleep and the premonition occurred while I was dreaming.  However, it differed from a regular dream because when I awoke my heart was pounding and I had been crying and that doesn't happen during a normal dream.

Describe in detail your feelings/emotions during the experience:        

I was anxious and confused.

Was there any emotional healing in any way following the experience?         

No

What was the best and worst part of your experience?   

There was NO best part, and the worst part was learning that the dream had merit.

Has your life changed specifically as a result of your experience?      

No     

Did you have any changes of attitudes or beliefs following the experience?            Yes    For a while I was very angry at God because I asked him to not let my dream be a premonition of what had happened to my dad, so when I found out that my dad really did drowned, I was angry at God for several years.

Death Compacts are when two or more living people promise among themselves that whoever dies first will try to contact the other(s).  Have you ever made such a compact?     

Yes

I have a compact with my husband.  If I die before him, I told him to be on the look out for a message from me in the form of a paw print or the numbers "1434" which is code for "I love you more".  I asked him to do the same for me.

Did you observe or hear anything regarding people or events during your experience that could be verified later?        

Yes I saw my dad underwater and the next morning we learned that he was missing and his body was recovered from the river five days later.

What emotions did you feel during the experience?         

When I awoke I found that I had been crying in my sleep and I was very sad and worried about my dads welfare.

Was the experience witnessed or experienced by others?         

Yes

Only my initial dream was witnessed by myself and no one else, however, I threw the quarter into the river asking my dad to call home, but my mother had the realistic like dream that he had called her, yet she had no knowledge of me throwing the quarter into the river that day.

Did you become aware of future events?     

Yes

I seem to know when things will happen before they do.  I can sometimes predict when a pet or loved one will die.  I can't tell the exact date when something might occur, but I can predict a time frame.  I did this with my mother-in-law and several pets.

Have you shared this experience with others?       

Yes    They're usually shocked when I tell them.

Have you shared this experience formally or informally with any other researcher or web site?  

Yes

This story was published in Fate magazine approximately five to seven years ago.

 Is there anything else you would like to add regarding your experience?     

No

Were there any associated medications or substances with the potential to affect the experience?     No

Following the experience, have you had any other events in your life, medications or substances which reproduced any part of the experience?   

No 

Did you ever in your life have a near-death experience, out of body experience or other spiritual event? 

Yes 

Several out of the body experiences

Did the questions asked and information you provided accurately and comprehensively describe your experience?          

Yes

Please offer any suggestions you may have to improve this questionnaire.         

None needed.  Thank you for allowing me to share my experience.