Hi Tara:
Your title captured my eye, as I also lost a nephew to a drunk driver on July 1st, and the dragonfly symbolizes his soul. I do believe you are my niece and glad to see you found this wonderful site, as I have been coming to this site since 1999 and did post that day back in 2006.
I always think when I see a dragonfly or a picture of one, its Ty letting us know he's ok. My two sisters and I were shopping in a small mall off the highway near Toronto when we walked into a store and wondered around, only to find a small box of dragonfly napkin rings tucked in a cornor shelf.
Love A

We had a teacher at our school who died of a very rare forum of cancer, only about a dozen cases in the world. She was an avid athlete, as are her brothers and sisters. I can't remember all the details to the story but at her funeral, her brother told a story about how he had been out biking between the time of her death and the services,(one of Joanie's passions) and was swarmed by all these red dragonflies. If I remember correctly they came from nowhere and just followed him as he rode. And you normally see the green or blue ones but these were red.
He asked the congregation to always think of Joanie when we see a dragonfly, especially a red one.

Similarly, my son and daughter in law lost their baby at 27 weeks gestation. They gave her the middle name of Aliyah, in Hebrew it means "To raise". I am a butterfly gardner and when I see a butterfly spiraling up, I whisper "We love you, Aliyah."

How heart wrenching your loss. Wishing you gentle kindness and much comfort for your healing.

I never heard of the dragonfly only the butterfly as the soul of one we have lost.

I will be looking out for dragonflies in the future.

I have a butterly wind chime hanging outside my back door. I purchased it prior to my Dad's passing and it now has taken on a special meaning to me as He is brought to mind. Maybe a dragonfly wind chime is in my future.

I lost my mother 2 years ago. She was a fabulous gardener and we spent hours together playing in the dirt. She loved dragonflies and was so delighted with the variety of them she saw here in Florida. I think of her every day when I see them and always ask them to tell her what's blooming in the garden.

Kate

This seems almost unreal to me. Our son and granddaughter died 5 years ago last June 17. We are in the midst of a big kitchen remodel, and as accent tiles on the backsplashes, I chose tiles from an artist I found at an art show in Michigan. He does really terrific nature motifs and I chose turtles and frogs from his collection, as they did so symbolize the 3 boys we raised, especially our lost boy Dave who absolutely loved frogs and turtles. Somehow, I felt I needed a third choice, as it looked to me as though we'd have turtles and frogs everywhere. I chose dragonflies and when my husband asked me why, I told him I didn't know but they just felt right. And now I know. They are the embodiment of our lost boy and granddaughter and they give me even more reason to smile as I look at my new kitchen. Thank you for relating this.

My Mother died 5 months ago and when I see draganfly's I think the same thing, so it's just not you. i hope it's true, any little thing is comforting.

Have any of you ever read the "Dragonfly Story"? I ran across it the other day!

The Dragonfly

Once, in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads,
there lived a little water beetle in a community of water
beetles. They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond
with few disturbances and interruptions.

Once in a while, sadness would come to the community when one of
their fellow beetles would climb the stem of a lily pad and
would never be seen again. They knew when this happened; their
friend was dead, gone forever.

Then, one day, one little water beetle felt an irresistible urge
to climb up that stem. However, he was determined that he would
not leave forever. He would come back and tell his friends what
he had found at the top.

When he reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the
surface of the lily pad, he was so tired, and the sun felt so
warm, that he decided he must take a nap. As he slept, his body
changed and when he woke up, he had turned into a beautiful
blue-tailed dragonfly with broad wings and a slender body
designed for flying.

So, fly he did! And, as he soared he saw the beauty of a whole
new world and a far superior way of life to what he had never
known existed.

Then he remembered his beetle friends and how they were thinking
by now he was dead. He wanted to go back to tell them, and
explain to them that he was now more alive than he had ever been
before. His life had been fulfilled rather than ended.

But, his new body would not go down into the water. He could
not get back to tell his friends the good news. Then he
understood that their time would come, when they, too, would
know what he now knew. So, he raised his wings and flew off
into his joyous new life!

~Author Unknown~

What a great poem Thanks for that. Now i really believe!!!

Thanks for explaining & sharing the story of the dragonfly. I am well aquainted with butterflies and have never looked at one the same since the loss of my only 2 children. Now I will be looking more intesively for dragonflies as well. And I have seen red ones before, but not often. They are very neat-looking, and these, as well as the butterflies are so much beautiful-looking since I have lived in S. Carolina. Maybe THIS is where I am "supposed" to be? Makes me wonder!
Emma in SC

A friend of mine told me the dragonfly story just recently. She had lost her son a few days earlier, and I told her to look for signs from him. The same day we had the conversation about dragonflies, a dragonfly swooped down in front of my car and flew in front of me, as if he was leading the way. The same thing had happened to me with a hawk right after my daughter Jill died.

I've never seen a dragonfly on our dirt road. They always hang out around water. A few days later, on another road, a dragonfly flew alongside my car, right outside my window.

I passed along the messages to my friend.

Thought I would add my experience her to the other stories. I posted this under my origional post but thought I would share it here because this is what started my experience.

Oh! I almost forgot! I have read the past thread about the dragonflies and the most amazing thing happened! Last Saturday my husband, son and my best girlfriend and her husband were sitting on my front porch just as the day was turning to early evening and these two dragonflies started flying around us. I never took much stock in them until I read that thread. I was telling the story to my family and friends how alot of people think of dragonflies as people they have lost or a sign of the afterlife when the dragonflies started flying straight at me, flying towards my face! They kept flying around us until the daylight vanished. I felt as if my Momma was trying to let me know she made it!!

Thanks for taking the time to read :)

Lisa

Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful story.

A dragonfly has become a symbol for my Mom since her passing in February. She had a love of them and had
little dragonfly things all around the house.

This past year has been very hard for my and my family.
My Mom passed away from a sudden stroke this past February. My Dad passed away 2 days after Thanksgiving last year, after only having been diagnosed with cancer 3 weeks prior. They were both 64 yrs of age. Just a few months prior to losing Dad, my Grandad succumbed to complications of Alzheimers in May, and my Grandma passed in her sleep in early June.

I am constantly reading books and surfing the web for . .I don't know what really. I'm doing anything and everything I can to try to survive the events of the past year, and with the upcoming holidays know it will be even harder.

Reading such inspirational poems helps, as well as knowing there are others too who are grieving the loss of loved ones and are also finding a way to survive.

I lost my mom and dad within 14 mos. of each other about 9 years ago. I had started gardening when I bought my house, after my divorce. I had given my mom a framed picture/letter that reads..." Mom, If I had a rose for every time I thought of you, I could walk forever in my garden." I thought that it was one of the most beautiful sayings that I had ever seen. I had it at her funeral and it hangs in my hall now.

Gardening, butterflies, dragonflies...all of those things remind me of life renewed and memories past. All of you stories are so wonderfully touching. Blessings to you all.

Your dragonfly stories and remembrances of lost loved ones are very touching.
Most of my fond and joyful thoughts and memories of loved ones come from my garden, and from the beautiful, living things in nature ~ things that I so often notice in quiet, unexpected, uplifting moments. I found this forum while searching for the author of one of my favorite quotes, which I first saw on a desk calendar, years ago, and now I read in the Oct. 21 post by "believer" - "If I had a rose for every time I think of you, I could walk forever in my garden." Does anyone know the author of that quote? Thank you.

The first time I heard of the Dragonfly poem was at my bosses funeral 20 years ago, he was 40 years old with a young family and died of a massive heart attack at a baseball game he was playing in. It was the most beautiful poem I had ever heard and touched me deeply. I lost my own mother in a car accident in 1974, and when my dad passed in 1997 we had the poem read at the service. My three daughters and myself have loved dragonflies ever since the first time we heard the poem and always say HI to "Opa" when we see one. When I moved into my new home 5 years ago I was walking through my garden when I spotted a huge dragonfly hovering around me, it landed on a tiki torch less than a foot away from me, I slowly put my finger out toward it and it climbed onto it and stayed for a few minutes before flying off, but remained flying around the garden. It was really Awesome. So now 2 of my daughters have gotten a small Dragonfly Tattoo on their shoulders to memorialize my Dad, and remember my Mom, my youngest daughter is going for her tattoo soon, and the more I think about it I may overcome my fear and get one too. God Bless all who have Loved and Lost.

August 10,2011 My father passed away this January. He was an electrician for most of his life. He had only recently quit working when he began having medical problems. My father loved his children and grandchildren with all his heart. He was never afraid to tell us how proud he was of us and he sacrificed so much for his family. He was known as the"Blue-Eyed Whale" and since his passing, we have seen many whale signs and whale references that remind us that he is watching over us. Two weekends ago my daughter and I were on a trip. My daughter was swimming when a dragonfly appeared and hovered over the pool the entire time she was swimming. It hovered right in my face when we got ready to leave, then it hovered infront of our car twice more as we drove away. Last week, I saw another dragonfly and it too hovered right by my face. My mother, last year, adopted a kitty named Dragonfly. Too many coincidences, so I decided to research dragonflies. I am so glad I found this site. Dragonflies are closely related to light so it would make since that my dad would chose a beautiful creature like a dragonfly to reassure us with.

My husband & I were camping last week, and our son called and said that our almost 18 year Elkhound had taken a turn for the worst, and he had made an appointment to have her put down. We were heart broken. Right after she was put down a red dragon fly came & landed on my knee & looked at me for a bit. Then it flew to my husband & landed on his chest & looked at him for a bit & then flew off. The next day we were standing on a bridge overlooking a waterfall & a red dragon fly came & sat between us & then flew off. I felt somehow like it was either my dad letting me know that Sheba was ok, or it was Sheba letting us know that she was ok. That she was whole again. That all her pain was over. That she could see, and hear again. That she was running, and playing, and waiting for us to join her. How we loved that dog. I had heard several times that butterflies, and dragon flies are signs from loved ones that have passed on. It was very comforting to me. I'm thinking of getting a tiny red dragon fly tatoo so I never forget that special moment. I knew she was gone when that happened.Sheba was always either laying at my feet, or sitting at my knees looking at me. My husband, for years, use to pick her up & she would have her legs over his shoulders & he would hug her. It seemed fitting that the dragon fly sat on my knee, and landed on my husbands chest. My son texted me right after the dragon fly flew away & said she was gone, but as I said, I already knew. I have loved reading all the other posts. It justifies what I believe, and makes me even more comforted that my precious Sheba is ok, and waiting for me.

Just stumbled upon this site researching dragon flies. I lost my wife to Metastatic Breast cancer 5/12. Shortly after, I read a story on MSN.COM about a bride who lost her mom and how dragon flies appeared at the ceremony and one landed on her shoulder while walking down the isle.

I started to pay attention to this creature at home. Last summer while on my deck, I noticed a Dragon Fly came by. I hung around awhile, landing on the railing or circling my deck, then as fast as it appeared, it disappeared.
This happened almost every time I went onto the deck.

We had a West Highland Terrier named Sophia. This was my wife's dog. This dog would follow her everywhere. I always commented that if my wife stopped too quickly, she would land up her butt!!.

A year after my wife was diagnosed, Sophia also developed cancer. She was gone in a week after the diagnosis. My wife and I were heartbroken. So we searched for another Westie. When we found a litter, my wife said "The first one that gives me a kiss, is the one I want". Well we brought Maddison home in July of 2011. My wife passed away less than a year later.

One day this past summer, I was on the deck and Maddison was in the garden searching for varmints. A Dragon Fly appeared, flew around the deck, circled me, then flew down to Maddison, circled her. As fast as it appeared, it was gone. It gave me the chills.

I now have a girlfriend. She was experiencing problems at work and it was really disturbing her. She was still at work and I was mowing the lawn. While mowing, an idea suggestion popped into my head. I figured I would talk to her when she got home when a Dragon Fly started circling me the entire time I was mowing. It suddenly dawned on me that this insect was trying to tell me something. I stopped the mower to come in the house to call my GF, and that fast, the Dragon Fly disappeared.

I now look for a Dragon Fly every time I am outside. I have a new appreciation for this creature and feel blessed when I see one.

Oh, and one more thing. I have read that Dragonflies stay close to water. Well, the closest water we have around here is about 1/4 mile away.

Just stumbled upon this site researching dragon flies. I lost my wife to Metastatic Breast cancer 5/12. Shortly after, I read a story on MSN.COM about a bride who lost her mom and how dragon flies appeared at the ceremony and one landed on her shoulder while walking down the isle.

I started to pay attention to this creature at home. Last summer while on my deck, I noticed a Dragon Fly came by. I hung around awhile, landing on the railing or circling my deck, then as fast as it appeared, it disappeared.
This happened almost every time I went onto the deck.

We had a West Highland Terrier named Sophia. This was my wife's dog. This dog would follow her everywhere. I always commented that if my wife stopped too quickly, she would land up her butt!!.

A year after my wife was diagnosed, Sophia also developed cancer. She was gone in a week after the diagnosis. My wife and I were heartbroken. So we searched for another Westie. When we found a litter, my wife said "The first one that gives me a kiss, is the one I want". Well we brought Maddison home in July of 2011. My wife passed away less than a year later.

One day this past summer, I was on the deck and Maddison was in the garden searching for varmints. A Dragon Fly appeared, flew around the deck, circled me, then flew down to Maddison, circled her. As fast as it appeared, it was gone. It gave me the chills.

I now have a girlfriend. She was experiencing problems at work and it was really disturbing her. She was still at work and I was mowing the lawn. While mowing, an idea suggestion popped into my head. I figured I would talk to her when she got home when a Dragon Fly started circling me the entire time I was mowing. It suddenly dawned on me that this insect was trying to tell me something. I stopped the mower to come in the house to call my GF, and that fast, the Dragon Fly disappeared.

I now look for a Dragon Fly every time I am outside. I have a new appreciation for this creature and feel blessed when I see one.

Oh, and one more thing. I have read that Dragonflies stay close to water. Well, the closest water we have around here is about 1/4 mile away.

I don't if that is true but it is a nice thought. We have a lot of dragon flies here, there is a pond behind our homes. One day I saw hundreds if not thousands of damsel flies around the edge of the pond.

My great grandson and 2 of his friends were hit by a drunken driver, he died instantly. One is still critical after a year and the other is home but they will never be the same. Severe injuries to he heads and spines. The driver has been convicted and is in jail waiting sentencing.

My father died March 5 2002.. It was such a hard time in my life that having faith in my god was becoming harder and harder to grasp.. So.. sadly it took me 1 month to finally visit his gravesite.. He is buried at a beautiful cemetery with ponds.. Small forest creatures and many berry bushes.. I decided to sit on one of the benches and started talking out loud to my dad.. Saying things like "why did you have to leave me" and "I miss you so much" all of a sudden a beautiful dragonfly landed on the bench next to me and I started petting it.. Yes it was letting me pet it.. I then said "but most of all I miss our wonderful conversations we shared during the dinners I cooked for us" ( while my dad was sick I was attending culinary school)..right as I said that the dragonfly flew off.. 2 minutes later it came back landed in the same spot it had been before on the bench and proceeded to eat the ant he had in his mouth.. Needless to say right at that moment my faith had been instantly restored..I now have many dragonfly collectibles around my home just to remind me of that moment.. That feeling.. That day.. That I was able to sit and have one more dinner with my dad... Daniel Lee Hill may you keep watching over James.. Juliana and myself.. I love and miss you everyday... You were the best father any daughter could ever all for!!!