Page 70 - Dark Matter Issue5 Part II

tears ran down her face. I was overwhelmed with gratitude that she was lucid enough to

acknowledge my arrival. No longer capable of speech, Dale indicated her awareness of

my presence off and on for the next several hours, occasionally gazing into my eyes to

try to gesture her gratitude.

As afternoon passed into evening, I watched the magnificent changing colors and

patterns of the sky. Time became measured by each of Dale’s inhalations and

exhalations, her life reduced to minutes, seconds, and heartbeats. As her breathing

became increasingly labored, for a few moments my chest felt so full and tight that I

could hardly breathe myself. I moved between grief and gratitude until they co-mingled

and became one emotion. My heart and breath began to fall into rhythm with Dale’s. I

began to savor the intimacy and fullness of each moment; every inhale, every exhale.

The air and energy between us became palpable, energized by a loving connection

much greater than the two of us.

I felt Dale’s body slowly shutting down, moving upwards from the base of her spine as

she began to pull away. At the same time, I felt more solid and anchored in the

poignancy of every moment. I was awed at the territory of loving consciousness

expanding in front of her and between us as she slowly shed the skin of her body.

Dale was fevered, burning off energy in one area of her body after another. Eventually,

the heat focused only in her face and the top of her head. Each breath became

shallower and farther apart from the last. I prayed the twenty-third psalm, the Tibetan

prayer for the dying, anything and everything to stay focused and keep this bridge

between us alive and intact. I breathed with her.

At 2:00 a.m., Dale left her body through the top of her head with a sigh and smile. I had

been with her for about 14 hours. I witnessed the opening of her crown center and the

birth of her spirit as she burned herself clear. Her face was radiant, and as her body

broke open, I was sprinkled with a little bit of that light. After calling the nurse, I slowly

bathed her body, putting lotion on her face, hands and feet. I anointed her with rose oil. I

meditated. Then I kissed her cheek one last time, and left the hospital.