Debra Basham

Living and Loving

Tag: encouragement

  • 126 – A Message from Rob

    Sacred Stories

    Rob was 5 hours flight away on a business trip when he passed suddenly from a brain aneurysm.

    He was only 45 years old and our sons 10 and 8. We were so connected, I was the one alerting the hotel, to check in his room.

    Soon after, I kept waking up at 1:26 am; each morning. I could not make sense of it, so I googled the meaning of “126” and posted it on Facebook.

    Shortly after, an acquaintance reached out to me and said, “Marie… One two six, can’t you see it? It’s the 12th of June!”

    (In our time format we have the day first, then the month.)

    Rob had passed on 12th June.

    Almost as if he wanted to send me confirmation, the next night I woke up at 12:06. I had to chuckle and said. “OK, I get it now!”

    That was the last time I had been woken in these early hours – and ever since we have been seeing the numbers 12, 6 or 126 everywhere we go.

    I believe he wants us to know he’s with us all the time.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Note* With her blessing, this post includes Marie’s identity:

    Marie lost her husband and father to their two boys in June 2018. Using her own tools and strong intuition, she paved her way back to HaPpiNeSs in a way that now ripples with massive impact around the world. Marie offers new perspectives that work on a soul level.

    Every journey of Grief is as unique as the person experiencing it!

    She founded a movement called “Loving Life after Loss”. With empathy and understanding, Marie gently picks up her clients from where they are at – with a whole lot of respect for their very unique journey. There is no “one size fits all” approach when it comes to Loss. Yet there is a stigma around Grief that she peels back, layer by layer, to not get entangled in other’s expectations, yet honour your own needs and space.

    Marie will offer you a different perspective on Life, Love and Grief and leave you with Choices that are yours to make.

    If you would benefit by connecting to Marie and “Loving Life after Loss”, visit MarieAlessi.com

  • Korean National Flower

    Sacred Stories

    Their daughter came to them from Korea at 4 months of age.

    This welcome bouquet and corsage (from the Korean adoption agency) was presented to her daughter on their first trip back to Korea, when her daughter was 9 years old.

    When the family moved to a new home, the Korean national flower, Rose of Sharon, was already growing right outside what became her daughter’s bedroom.

    Her daughter will soon be married. The couple met through a Korean adoption support group.

    Today, she saw this “double” bloom as a confirmation of and blessing on their love and union.

  • Tommy

    Sacred Stories

    When his patient died on the operating table and medical efforts of the team did not revive him, the surgeon called out, “Tommy, it’s not your time, come on back.”

    And Tommy’s heart started beating again….

    Bernie Siegel, M.D. first wrote about Love, Medicine, and Miracles.

    Now, in his eighties, following the passing of his beloved wife and after enjoying her continuity of consciousness, Bernie has written about No Endings, Only Beginnings.

    We must reject not only the stereotypes
    that others hold of us,
    but also the stereotypes
    that we hold of ourselves.

    ~ Shirley Chisholm

  • Landing Page

    Sacred Stories

    She read again the information about private meetings with a woman she had recently been considering having a session with, and closed it without scheduling an appointment.

    Then she thought she might visit the website only, but she could not remember the URL.

    When she did a search for the woman’s name the first link in the results took her to the landing page about private sessions…. NOT to the general “ABOUT” landing page!


    “Circles, like the soul,
    are never ending
    and turn round and round
    without a stop.”
    ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

    We witness the true structure of the universe and hints that the universe really is fail-safe….

  • Happy Easter!

    Sacred Stories

    She (admittedly) is not a morning person.

    Her mother was. Every morning her mom would call her too bright, too cheery, and too early. When she would answer the phone, she would hear this cheerful voice on the line, “Good morning!”

    Her mom passed…

    Easter morning she heard the phone ring! In her head she heard her own groggy, “Hello.”

    Then she clearly heard her mom’s bright and cheery voice, “Good morning. Happy Easter!”

    If you have (or would like to) love life after loss, check out Marie Alessi.

  • Pink Beach Home

    Sacred Stories

    She posted on FaceBook:

      As I look at my 120 year old, pink beach home in Rhode Island, USA, through my car window, I am amazed it is mine.

      I lived in utter poverty after my divorce. Some days, I would buy toilet paper one roll at a time. For over 8 years, I was saving everything I had for a home.

      You see, I called it “poverty with a plan.”

      My goal was to own a home.

      I saw the listing for this pink Victorian beach home. The street name was the same name as my deceased father! The number of the street address was the same number of years my parents were married. The seller’s name was that of my too-soon-departed brother.

      It was meant to be!

      They accepted my offer!

      The house and barn was better than I could ever have imagined.

      I did this. 😊 💕💕

  • Heart-Shaped Water Spot

    Sacred Stories

    Out for a bike ride, early Sunday morning, after the previous day of heavy storm-related rain, at 8:31 a.m. she photographed a distinct heart-shaped water spot.

    A few minutes later she sent it to a dear friend in a text message.

    The reply: “I was just sitting here, sobbing about Ella, feeling like she’s so far away.”

    “Nope,” she wrote back, including a rainbow symbol.

    “Your timing is divine,” Ella’s mom wrote, “I love you.”

    “I love you. Ella loves you. I love you. You love Ella. Timing is always divine. Do I have your permission to post this as a sacred story?” she asked.

    “Of course. I am still staring at this. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” Ella’s mom continued.

    “Also look BEYOND the sign,” she reminded.

    “I see her.” (heart symbol)



    PLEASE make an intention to notice. Every moment we are being guided. Right where we are, we are being given the opportunity to look BEYOND the sign….

    (See Ella’s Soapbox for the rest of the story.)

  • Healing is all the Buzz!

    Sacred Stories

    (A woman living in Florida, articulates her amazing synchronicity with a friend who lives in Mexico around a shared joy of the art form of dotting.)

    Note: Ze/Per/Hir/They – These pronouns offer inclusion and accuracy for someone who doesn’t identify by the male/female gender classifications, and were used in the original communication, and included here out of respect.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~

    About 4 days after my surgery, I had an amazing dream and sent an email telling zer about it:

    I want to let you know that your dotting has factored into my healing process.

    My post-lumpectomy healing has been progressing really well. Last night I slept perfectly again, aided by XS Tylenol, and dreamed that you and I were emailing each other using only dots to communicate. We did it so much that the predictive text feature started suggesting dots for us to use. The really amazing part of the dream was when the dots came off the screen and morphed into a honeycomb alive with buzzing bees. I awoke feeling better than ever, almost zero discomfort, as if the bees and honey had permeated my body and resolved all physical issues.

    My friend wrote back:

    OMG!!

    First off, I’m so happy to hear that you are healing well and slept well with no pain!

    But…. Last night I was sitting here with a pencil and paper trying to figure out how to make a honeycomb out of dots. How cool is that!!!

    (really what is reading off a screen but just a bunch of dots we programmers call pixels)

    Here’s to more healing. Holding you in the buzz.


  • Donate Platelets!

    Sacred Stories

    She had been feeling lonely and homesick for their previous home of 27 years, missing friends in particular. She began reflecting on the power of connection, even small conversations with those one doesn’t know well, in the course of daily life. She recalled the early days of Covid quarantine, wherein her daily walks brought nourishing and sustaining brief encounters with people she didn’t really know, or only knew slightly—and remembered how uplifting those small exchanges were. So, she resolved to start conversations with at least a few strangers she would encounter on that day’s walk—and she did!

    Out on her walk, she met a man wearing a T-shirt urging others to donate platelets — and her husband had just been scheduled to receive a transfusion of platelets, at least the 3rd or 4th such transfusion he has needed as a result of his blood cancer.

    So, she was able to thank the man personally, and give him a tangible piece of evidence of how much his lifesaving blood donations meant to another person in his community. She then learned that he had donated platelets over 350 times!


    Further, this man shared that he had had a heart attack and triple bypass just 3 weeks earlier, and was now on aspirin. So, he was in the process of determining how many days he would have to go without his aspirin in order to be able to donate again!

    As they parted after this personal and meaningful, though brief, conversation, the man said to her: “So many people have it so much worse than we do.” She was so touched and inspired by his ability to express this perspective, when he had narrowly escaped death just 3 weeks earlier!

  • Elephant Totem

    Sacred Stories

    She had experienced elephant as totem when she was first starting work as a clinical therapist.

    Many years later, elephant energy popped into her mind one evening.

    The next day a teacher/colleague (who was giving up formal office space) posted this on her Facebook wall: “Thought of you when I unpacked this. And if elephants are still significant for you — and it would bless you — would like to gift this to you.”



    She wrote back, “So interesting! I was appreciating the elephant symbol in my life just yesterday, and thinking back to my first baby steps into the work we/I do. I am humbled and grateful to accept this gift.”

    The elephant totem or elephant medicine will bring strength, power, courage, memory, good luck, happiness, bliss, and positivity in your new undertakings. … The elephant medicine will bring you good luck, health, and positivity.

    ~ WorldBirds.org

    Sacred stories are evidence of our connections!