Chapter 41
by Dandaya Melia
I lost both of my parents not long after I met the man I was going to marry. Their deaths left me shaken and unsure of how to move forward in my life. I longed for their counsel and blessings, so when I learned about one of Roland’s Channeled Messages for the Soul events in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, I decided I would go. I really wanted to get a message from them. But I was also very nervous. Will my dad come? Is my mom OK? Will I get a message? What if I don’t get a message? Does that mean they have forgotten me or that they don’t care? Are they happy? Should I get married? Does my dad like him?
The questions, doubts, and insecurities raced through my mind and body, adding to my fears about my upcoming wedding. My fiancé and I had been engaged for thirteen years before we finally set the date. I loved him with all my heart, but I worried about who was going to walk me down the aisle in my father’s place. It seems silly now, but back then it was paralyzing.
As the day of the event arrived, I made sure I had something of my father’s and a bracelet of my mother’s with me, hoping that these personal items would help me get a message. When I got in my car to leave that day, I remember looking at the time to make sure I wouldn’t be late. It was 3:21 p.m.
When I arrived at the venue where Roland was speaking, I felt a chill as we entered the room. I shrugged it off as I wrote my name, Dandaya, on the nametags we were given. I sat down in the chairs that were lined up in rows and waited for Roland to start.
As he walked in and started talking to the people who were there, he said, “Angela’s parents are here.” My parents called me Angela, I remember thinking, but there is no way Roland could know that. When I let him know that he might be referring to me, he came over to me and shared messages that I knew could only be from my mother and dad. Roland even took on my mother’s Asian personality as he spoke.
My parents had divorced when I was in my teens and because of it, my mother and I did not get along well. In fact, four days before she died, she wasn’t speaking to me. It was right after the tragic Station nightclub fire in Warwick, Rhode Island on February 20, 2003. I had driven past the site the next day against her wishes and it had made her upset. She had a massive stroke on February 25 and died in my old bedroom before we had a chance to speak to one another again.
Through Roland, my mother said that she loved me very much and was proud of me. She said, “It wasn’t your fault. I was looking for someone to blame,” no doubt referring to the rift we experienced after the divorce. A heavy weight was lifted off my heart. Two weeks later I learned that I was pregnant with my daughter. She was due on my mom’s birthday.
Then Roland asked me if I was getting married. I nodded a yes. That’s when he gave me my first Purple Paper. It had a sketch on it of the wedding cake topper I had just purchased, with two hearts joined together. It was the second cake topper I had purchased. The first one I had bought had a date on it and we couldn’t use it because our date had to be changed.
The message on that paper was from my father, who assured me that he would be there at my wedding: “I know the secret code. Yes, I will be at your wedding. I wouldn’t miss it for the world. You two belong together.” My fears immediately vanished as I realized that my dad had answered my questions—and my prayers. I was relieved and elated. I had the closure I needed to move on.
I heard that Roland was coming to town again to participate in an event that was being held at a convention venue where I had purchased my wedding dress. The date of the event was the anniversary of my dad’s death. They were holding a drawing for free tickets, and the winners’ names would be posted on Facebook. That’s where I learned that I won a ticket.
I found Roland’s booth in the exact same spot where the wedding dress vendor had been located a year before. I couldn’t help but think that all the coincidences that were occurring that day were signs. It wasn’t until I saw a photo of my Purple Paper from my dad displayed in Roland’s booth that I knew without a doubt that my dad was somehow behind all of this.
While I was there, Roland’s daughter told me that the Purple Papers Roland had been using were now in a lighter purple color. She mentioned the time frame that this color switch occurred, and I quickly realized that it occurred at the same time that I ordered my daughter’s flower girl dress, which was the exact color shade of the paper!
I received my second Purple Paper on Roland’s Facebook page. It was dated on the same day as my mother’s birthday. This message was again from my father. He told Roland to tell me, “I really did my best here. I know sometimes it was hard for you, but honestly, I’m OK now. No more pressures, no more headaches, no more worries.” He finished his message with “I love you so much” and left his name on the paper, Daniel. It also said, “P.S. Look for the signs.” In addition to all those coincidences that had occurred since that very first Purple Paper message, the entire week before I received this message, I felt his presence so strongly.
My father had been bedridden before he passed, suffering with multiple sclerosis, PTSD, and constant headaches. His legs had given out too, but his spirit was always upbeat and caring. He didn’t want me to worry and I remember him telling me that he would never leave me until he knew I had found someone to take care of me. He met my husband a few weeks after we had started dating and told me how much he liked him. He died a few weeks later of a massive heart attack. When he was found, he had been clutching a photo of him and me to his heart.
On my wedding day, six minutes before I was to walk down the aisle, the rain stopped and the sun came out. It had been pouring for hours before, with no sign that the weather would let up for my ceremony. When the gate opened and I began my walk down the aisle toward my husband and our wedding guests, a heart appeared on my arm. It is clearly visible in that first wedding photo.
I needn’t have worried about my wedding for all those years after my father died. My father was there with me always, and he did walk me down the aisle at my wedding, sharing a love that’s truly heaven sent and eternally blessed.