Have you ever met a complete stranger and felt an instant liking for them?
Maybe you can’t put a finger on why though. Was it their smile?
Was it something they said? Could you have known them in a past life?
Who knows! There’s just a connection we share with certain people, and it doesn’t happen often.
This is how I felt when I met my friend “FOAL”. The crazy thing is that I actually haven’t met her in person yet, since she lives in Japan and I live in New York. We were in an international online meditation group together and chatted via Facebook here and there, so the connection we made was only through the written word. I guess “voices carry” through sheer energy!
As it turns out, she became one of the most influential people in my life.
How can someone I never even met in person have such an impact in my life?

Well, I learned that by following my intuition, I draw good things into my life. Because I felt a connection to “FOAL”, when she asked me to like her Facebook page she had set up for a book she wrote, I did. That was easy enough, of course. What’s one click going to cost me anyway? But I took it a step further, thinking I was being nice and wanting to do her a favor – I actually bought the book from Amazon! And then, I read it!
Wow, this was above and beyond the call of duty from one stranger to another!
By the time I finished reading her book (I couldn’t put it down and read it in 3 nights!) I felt completely humbled. It was she who had done me the favor.

Her book rang of Truth. Make that boomed…it boomed of Truth. I literally devoured every single word, because each one mattered. Each word resonated through me like the vibration of a drum. It was everything I was looking for, without knowing what it was I was looking for. Something within me shifted and I saw Life in a different way. It became much clearer, things made more sense, I felt safe. All the things I was confused about; what It’s all about, why we suffer, are we alone, does any of this mean anything….so many questions! It was a balm for my mind and soul.
I’ve been inspired to step outside of my comfort zone because of this new shift inside of me and am starting a project I’ve only dreamed of in the past! I feel like I have nothing to lose anymore! It involves my first love and will require an enormous amount of work! (I will share soon!).

Like Martin Luther King Jr., “FOAL” had a dream….but literally. And many of them. It is based on her actual experience.
When I asked her why she shared her experience and what she hopes others will gain from it, she said,

“you have no idea how I hope for it to be read by as many people as possible. And not because it is self- gratifying, but just because I know I must share it, I know it has an intrinsic power to heal and help, and such power doesn’t come from me. It could be so easily used as a tool to understand life better, to understand oneself better and to realize there is a possibility to communicate with this other dimension that is within us”.

I would like you to hear more about this book as it should be told; in “FOAL’s” voice. My hope is that you will benefit from it as much as I have….

An Interview with the author of “FOAL and the Angels”

DB: You wrote a book, “FOAL and the Angels”, based on your own experiences. Kind of a spiritual journey, so to speak?

Author: Yes! Throughout a number of years I had dreams, and in these dreams I was given insights and intensive lessons on the meaning of life.
What I describe in the book is almost exactly how it happened, or at least how it was felt and registered in my mind. Nothing could be truer to me than this experience; nothing could be more real to me. It was an intensive course of wisdom, imparted through dreams, messages, and voices. I call it “Angels School” because I was being guided by what can only be called Angels.
I chose to speak through “FOAL”, a little boy who wants answers to the mysteries of Life! All of his ten thousand questions get answered through the unfolding of his dreams. This is a fairytale. But a true one.

DB: Why do you think you had these dreams? Why were you “the one”? Do you feel special?

Author: No, no, no! I was never “the ONE”!! That is exactly what I wanted to avoid! That is why I chose the fairytale format and a pseudonym. I didn’t want it to be about the messenger, but the MESSAGE.
I am FOAL. So are you. FOAL can be anyone!
This can sound a bit trite and cliché, but really, and I mean, REALLY, there is such possibility of contact with other dimensions in all and each one of us. It is all about listening, and honing that listening.
At the end of the day, (you don’t even need to give the Angels a name if it doesn’t agree with you), you can call it the voice of your conscience, the little voice inside, that everybody has. Even atheists!
And if it happened to a person like me, not in the least special (a.k.a. FOAL), it can happen to anybody. That is the message I wanted to convey.
As for why I started receiving those dreams when I did, that is something I am still far from understanding. I assume, and only assume, it is for karmic reasons. Some bigger picture that I can’t see, I guess.

DB: When you began having the dreams what made you realize they were important?

Author: Well, that was not difficult. When you have this kind of powerful dreams, they become to you more real than ‘real’ life itself. You don’t just see the dream, you experience it. There is no way you can doubt it.
And there were so many more stunningly beautiful dreams than I could ever put into Foal’s story.
At times I would have 5 or 6 dreams per night; it was exhausting, but always exhilarating.
I remember a few times I wished I could sleep 24 hours a day just to be able to dream! On the other hand, the doubts/problems arose with the messages and voices in my head while I was awake.
There I had a hard time casting my doubts away. The thought that it could be all just in my head, pure imagination, was always there. Although at the end it didn’t matter anymore.
They were real enough to me, and what I was hearing was just too profoundly wise and beautiful to come from me. But even after making peace with myself, to make the decision of sharing this with others…well, THAT was a big, big obstacle to overcome, and it took me many years to get there.

DB: How has this experience changed you and your life?

Author: Well, although the sense of Bliss and perfection does fade away, the realization of the ‘knowing’ inside stays and this I can’t explain. I don’t think I have any doubts anymore about our true selves or life after death. I see the world in another way now, definitely, and I do feel I have a deeper understanding of Life, but no, I am not saved from my ego.
The lessons continue, I will fall again into its daily traps, but there is some more ‘noticing’ on my part, or how can I say…a becoming more conscious about how I want to live.

DB: Are you afraid to die? Were you afraid before these dreams occurred?

Author: Not really to die, but I am definitely afraid of pain. So yes, I do fear a painful dying process, but not death itself. Not anymore.

DB: Who/What do you feel orchestrated these experiences?

Author: How could I know!! Maybe ‘we’ do, before incarnating!
I understand how it would be intriguing to know who orchestrated this, but I don’t feel it is so important to know now.
They just happened and that is what I must focus on.

DB: Do you believe in God? If not, what?

Author: Oh, yes! That, I do!

DB: Did you believe in something different before the dreams?

Author: I was raised Catholic, so I shared many of the Church’s beliefs, although I questioned many of those very beliefs for many years.
But after the dreams and voices, I felt liberated by many unnecessary rules. All seemed to be so much more simple.

DB: Do you think our existence as a human being is an illusion? Is this life an illusion?

Author: I am in no position to give you a correct answer to that. Maybe a sort of dream?? Or a reverse out-of-body experience?? An ‘into-body’ experience?! Or experiencing existence in another dimension??
But really these are just thoughts, and am not sure I believe them myself.
You know, I am not really that much interested anymore in what I believe, but rather in taking what comes as it comes, and experiencing it and appreciating it.
But most of all, in trying not to ‘label’ experiences into beliefs! Beliefs can change, the experience remains. What I mean is: whatever I (or you or anybody else) may believe about this experience, the experience would not change anyway, would remain a part of my life.

DB: Do you live any differently than before the dreams? Are you calmer, happier, less confused about things? ARE YOU ENLIGHTENED, like the Buddha?

Author: You must be kidding me! Enlightened! NO! But I know now that that is what I am seeking. Or at least to get as close to it as I can. And, yes, less confused, certainly.

DB: The illustrations on your Facebook page are beautiful…did you do them?

Author: No, my friend and artist, Andy Boerger, made them for me. I really wanted my readers to have an idea of how I saw ‘things’ in my dreams, so I thought the only way I could communicate visually with FOAL’s readers was to post on Facebook these beautiful pictures. I set up a FOAL and the Angels fan page for this reason.
(https://www.facebook.com/FoalAndTheAngels) Nevertheless, however good the pictures may be, this reality cannot compare with ‘that’ one. The colors are so much more ‘alive’ in there, with a life of its own. And the sense of Love exuding from everything is ‘unspeakable’ and ‘un-paintable’.

DB: Before we close, is there anything more you want to say to our friends?

Author: OK…I can’t say of course if it will live up to your expectations, but I can say it is an easy read, it will flow smoothly, yet at the same time will make you stop to ponder on the simple “down-to-earth-and-up-to-the-sky” wisdom so gently imparted (of course this is the part which is not mine, the Angels part! I do not have such wisdom in myself.) It helped me a lot in living my life, and my greatest hope is that it may help you too in some unfathomable ways.
It is a story of how dreams and ‘messages’ led me on a spiritual journey. I felt this need to put it out in the world, not because it is unique, which it’s not (all these things must have been said over and over again in the centuries), but because it is so un-academic in style, that just anybody can easily read it and possibly gain some drops of wisdom out of it … just as I did. And my final words would be : “Looking forward to your feedback!!”.

DB: “FOAL”, I thank you for touching my life so deeply, with your words and your presence. Much Love, Denise
DENISE BARRY

Denise Barry is an inspirational writer and author. Her new children’s book What Does the Tooth Fairy Do with Our Teeth? is available now.
Denise loves writing for kids because she thinks like one, and what else is there to do during the wintry months in Buffalo, NY where she lives with her husband, two kids and dog?
Denise is also a co-writer in the best-selling book Watch Her Thrive: Stories of Hope, Courage and Strength, and you can find her essays on high traffic websites like positivelypostiive.com, manifeststation.com, notsalmon.com, empoweringparents.com, dirtygirlmudrun, etc.
To learn more about Denise visit her website at http://www.denisebarry.net/