Naples, Florida

In October 2020 I spent a month with my mom at the retirement community where she lives in Naples, Florida. My dad had passed away a few weeks earlier.

Because of Covid, I was not allowed to go to the swimming pool so I drove around in my dad's cool golf cart and went for walks. I enjoyed looking at the birds: egrets, ibis, anhinga and wood storks.

Over the course of a few days, I saw several cardinals and I was amazed at their bright red color!

One day, coming back from a walk, I said to my mom: "I saw cardinals! How in the world did anyone ever get the idea of making birds bright red???!!!"

My mom: "That's nice."

Then I told Gérard.

Gérard: "Did you get some pictures?"

Then I told my friend, Judith. I don't know why I mentioned it to her; it wasn't a particularly interesting piece of information.

Judith: "Did you know that cardinals are supposedly departed loved ones coming back to say hello and offer comfort?"

Me: "No, where did you hear that???!!! Or did you just make it up?"

Judith: "No it's a real thing. Often they appear not long after death. Lots of people have mentioned it. Try googling cardinals..."

I googled it. There were pages and pages about cardinals representing deceased loved ones! I was stunned! Tears were rolling down my face.

After that, on my walks, I never saw another cardinal. I had gotten the message.