Stonewall Jackson Training School

 Novie Rachel Cox 11/31/1940 - 4/23/2023

My beautiful mother is gone from this earth. She left a year ago, leaving behind so much life and love that she created. My Mom's life was a testament to her faith in God and his plan. She woke up praying, prayed throughout the day, went to bed praying. She didn't pray for riches or worldly possessions. She prayed for others to have peace, healing, happiness, a new job, a better disposition. For herself, she prayed for her family, for her own strength, for direction in life. Her prayer game was strong, her faith was strong, her walk with Jesus was strong. She had a spiritual intuition as well as a psychic intuition. She ALWAYS was able to "know" when I needed a phone call in my worst times. She would call me sometimes while I was in the middle of spiritual or mortal struggle and start the phone call by saying, "Crissie, tell me what is happening right now!" How did she know? God told her I'm sure of it.  

My favorite example of her intuition came from my childhood home. We lived at the corner of a very busy intersection. Before there was a traffic light there, many an accident occurred, so many died waiting for emergency personnel to arrive. My Mom felt compelled to help as she could, going to get basic life saving First Aid certification so she could try and help those in need before EMS arrived. On one summer evening, we were sitting out in the yard in our lawn chairs watching the traffic go by. Anyone that lives in the south will understand this evening tradition. No doubt she likely had some sweet tea in her hand at the time. Mom leaned forward and said to me, "Go inside and wait by the phone. There is about to be a bad wreck. When you hear it, you need to call the police." This was before 911. Mom had the emergency numbers posted by the phone on the wall. I did what she said and it wasn't long after, that I heard the many bangs, crashes of metal on metal, tires screeching. 

Mom had several visions that went far behind a mother's intuition of things to come. She had vivid dreams where she received signs of things to come. 

When Alzheimer's came knocking she took it in stride. She continued to go to the church up until the last year, when taking her out of her routine at the Assisted Living Center was too much of a bother to her. One morning, as we were having breakfast, about 2 to 2 and 1/2 years before the end of her life, I asked her "what if your memory loss ends up being as bad as Mam-Maw's was before she died?" Mom crossed her hands, looked in introspectively, then said quickly, "I'd accept that, because that is God's will." Amazing for me to hear that at that time. I was so upset at that time that God was somehow punishing her with Alzheimer's after all she had done for him. I lost sight that her reward was not here, but in heaven. The ripple effect that her life has on her family is part of that plan as well. We are all left here to deal with our mortal lives as my brother stated. Yet, she planted the seeds in our life to grow our spirit. We are all left now with our own prayers, prayers that began in earnest that last week she was still here for me. Praying for her to have a peaceful death, a painless death, a reunion with her family and friends she so desperately missed. Praying for our family to remain connected, strong, healthy and able to carry on her goodness, to honor her, to make her proud.  

When Mom passed at 9:13a.m. on April 23rd, 2023, the spiritual realm was there briefly. An opening with communication and energy that was felt by my sister and I. Mom's breaths had become very far spaced apart, the blood from her body had traveled to her core. I whispered into her ear, "it's okay Mom, you can go with God, you were a wonderful Mother. Go ahead and go, we will be right behind you, I love you." That last breath was exhaling her mortal life. No longer bound by flesh and blood. That Moment, the air in the room became thinner and fresher, the light brighter, the mood calmer. My sister felt a strong energy pass through her body, energizing, making its presence known. When the angel of death was gone, having taken our dear Mother, we were left as orphans. No father, no Mother on earth. Both beyond our sight, but still very much a part of us and we of them.   

I had a dream 2-3 months after, during heavy grieving, where I was in a place sitting in rows, like what you would find in a church. I look to my left and I see a few women walking into the same row as I. One of them was my Mom. I stood and walked up to her hurriedly and hugged her, placed my head in her chest and said, "Mom!" Mom hugged me back, I FELT her hug in my dream. She said, "you're doing good honey. I told you I wanted to go to Heaven!" I woke up feeling happy for the first time in months, smiling, energized. She looked so healthy, so happy, so care free. I'm guessing, that the people waiting, were others grieving, waiting on their loved ones. A meeting place for the two spirit worlds during sleep.