I fight for that last ounce of breath, gasping, struggling, with all that’s left. All the good times - the memories I’ve had before begin to flash right before my very eyes. All of a sudden the rhythmic beating of my heart begins to fade - each labored breath getting harder by the second…three breaths…two breaths…one long, agonizing breath…and finally, that excruciating, crucial gasp for that final breath…suddenly - my entire body goes limp. Just like that? After an entire life, it comes down to this? I just lie there. IT’S OVER! Unexpectedly, a bright light shines in front of me, glowing with a sense of peace, inviting me into its bliss. Death…

The scenery around me slowly becomes clear, everyone and everything is visible. I notice the burgundy suburban that ran me over parked on the curb. I see friends, family, emergency rescuers, and then something I don’t expect - my body. Stiff, it lies in the middle of the road, crowded by many unknown pedestrians. I try to listen in and figure out what’s happening to me. Then suddenly, I hear a doctor proclaim I’m dead. How could this happen? What is going on? Questions flooded my mind as I swiftly began to float towards the sky. Suddenly, it hits me, like a big slap on the face - hard and numbing. Could this be an NDE?

I try to remember all that I learned about these supernatural experiences. An NDE (near death experience) is the genuine experience of dying, or coming close to death, such as a coma. Yes, these are often heard of frequently, but could I really be having one now? I look down on my body wondering how is it possible that I feel as if it’s not mine - as if I’m someone different merely watching the whole thing happen. I’ve died without dying.

Floating in the air, I continue to uncover the mystery of all that’s going on. Ok, I am 99.99% sure that I am having an NDE, but what kind? There are different types of NDE’s, so the question now is, which one am I receiving? How about Feeling of Calmness? No that can’t be because I have no feelings of peacefulness, no acceptance of death, or no emotional nor physical comfort - so that’s off the list. What about The Tunnel? No, its obviously not that either considering I am in no way near, or in, a tunnel. I am also not talking to any spirits nor God so that crosses off Communication with Spirits and Spirit Beings. I got it! I am having an OBE (out-of-body experience)! I have all the symptoms, like the way I can truly see my own body and the people around it - that’s a major symptom of OBE.

I am extremely amazed that these are true. Suddenly, sobs from below catch my attention. All of my friends and family are gathered around my cold, hard body. I feel the expression on my face twist into a worried look. It kills me to see their faces like that - tear stained. I float into the crowd and decide that it’s not my time to go yet. I lie horizontal to the ground and drift, slowly, downwards, coming back inside my once-empty body. I feel my legs, my arms, my head…and my feet! I feel ecstatic for a small moment, but then the pain of the accident comes fiercely. I let out a low, cracked scream to let the mourning people know - I’m still alive.

Yes, I’m back! During my “Out-of-Body Experience” I couldn’t feel a thing. I floated around in a light heavenly bliss. I saw my friends and family weep for my demise. Now, I feel every agonizing ache and twinge caused by the car accident. I feel the agony of those several broken bones ,the unbearable burning of my flesh torn apart in several places. But hey, at least I feel something. I’ll gladly take the agony of living over the peacefulness of death any day, at least for now because I’m just too young to die.