The Hearts of the Children Turn to their Fathers...

My dad recently forwarded the following account as written by his aunt, Cathirn Lovisa Barney Sabin.  She was my dad's dad's (Floyd Hyrum Barney's) youngest sister.  This account touches me deeply, perhaps because she sees in vision/dream her siblings on the other side, including some whom died in infancy and some whom were stillborn.  It makes me think of my sweet Anneca.  I like to picture her as a beautiful, young adult in heaven, with long, blond hair, looking down on our family.  I am grateful she already has family there to surround her until we can be reunited.

A Dream or Reality

Contributed By Jeffrey Sabin · Jul 15, 2014, 10:41 PM · 0 Comments

Cathirn Lovisa Barney Sabin, 1987 It was the early morning hour of April 10th, 1987. My mother Sarah Cathirn Ottesen Barny Snow stood before me, smiling. She was happy, contented and very pretty. She was young, she seemed to be about 35 or 40 years old (as if age means anything). She said she knew I was troubled and they came to give me instructions. She asked if I knew Lydia and Andrew who were standing on each side of her. I said, “Of course, I know who they are,” and I did! They were infants when they went back into the Spirit World and now they were adults. Lydia was very pretty. She stood just behind mother on her right. She was a little shorter than mother and her hair was fuller and light brown. She had it pulled into a bun and a wisp of hair was coming down around her face. Andrew was standing to Mother’s left. He was about the same height as mother. He was not bald but had thin hair on top. I was thinking how much he looked like my Uncle Lyman. As they communicated it didn’t seem as if their mouths moved as they talked, but we all four of us communicated with our minds. Andrew was disappointed because his headstone was broken and no one cared enough to do anything about it. They said that all the headstones were sandstone and was breaking up and would all need to be replaced. I was the one CHOSEN to take care of this. I asked “What do you mean?” They answered “Ma and Pa (my grandfather and grandmother Ottesen) were good, honorable people and want to be remembered by all of their descendants.” To honor them and all they have done, to leave us a special heritage, I was to replace, not repair, all the headstones with names and dates. The large one was to be of black and gray granite. All names were to be listed on the back. It was shown to me as to how it would look. I then asked, “You mean all nine babies are to be listed?” The answer was, “No there were 14 of us and all the names are to be on this stone with Ma and Pa.” Lydia and Andrew’s life on earth was short, and they claim me as well as all of the descendants as their heritage. Each child, grandchild, great grandchild and on and on throughout the line as theirs, and no one is to be lost. I ask them about the headstone or headstones and they showed all of them to me. They showed me the shape of the double one, and told me it was to be black and gray granite and all of the children’s were to be alike. All 14 names are to be on the double one for Ma and Pa (Grandma and Grandpa). I asked, “But why me? I have never bought a headstone. I don’t know how. It will cost a lot of money.” They said, “Don’t worry, you will know the right one when you see it.” Meaning the large double one. “And Shirlene and Howard will help you. Do not feel back because nine children died in infancy, but rejoice because 13 children are with Ma and Pa now. When I woke up, I wondered why there was only 13 there instead of 14….Then I remembered that Aunt Hannah was still alive on earth. Another thing I wondered about was the three stillborn babies. Would they be there with them? As I thought about it I knew the answer was “Yes” because they had counted them. Mother then motioned for me to come closer and she held me and hugged me with a love and warmth that carried into eternity. As I was held in Mother’s arms there were other people around, not only Lydia and Andrew, but the rest of the brothers and sisters as well as grandparents. And it seemed as far as I could see they were smiling and reassuring me and telling me to follow directions and do as I was told. They could not do the job I was asked to do, it was up to me. I then woke up and realized I was in bed and it was still dark. I woke Elden up and told him about my dream and realized it was not a dream, but I knew it had really happened. Elden was very supportive as we went into the living room and cried together. I asked him to go back to bed while I reread the history of my mother’s family. It was then I read the birthing order of the children and they became real people and not babies who had died and were remembered by sandstone headstones in Spanish Fork City Cemetery. They were living spirits who cared about me as well as all of us. We were all family, we have a precious heritage. Several weeks have past now and I feel more certain that this actually happened as I described. My thoughts go to the Eternity, to the ones who have died. I have a strong desire to keep in touch with my cousins and their families, to get to know each other and renew friendships. I realize life and death are not about headstones, but I know headstones are a tool, a purpose to cause our family unity to happen. I want to know about my family heritage. I want to learn to know my ancestors and their hopes, their dreams, their sorrows, their sufferings, and their successes. I have a desire to be a part of an eternal family unit with these noble ancestors. I want to become involved while on this earth in building family relationships that will make us want to spend eternal lives in association with each other. We are all involved with our own immediate families, it is sometimes difficult to keep close association with brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc. Yet these are the very people with whom we hope to be worthy to inherit celestial exaltation. It is important to maintain family ties and associations even though our lives are busy. The only way we can do this is to decide that such relationships are important and then make the necessary effort to strengthen the ties. It is with these thoughts that we, Shirlene, Howard, Aunt Hannah, and I, will create the desire for family unity. It will be fun to get together at our first cousin get together on September 27th, 1987. Aunt Hannah’s birthday weekend in Kilgore, Idaho. We can then discuss the headstones and ways to accomplish this scary, thrilling, necessary assignment. I love my mother and all my ancestors. I especially feel close to Lydia and Andrew and feel their presence as I plan and contemplate our reunion in September. Love to all Cathirn