The blooming Christmas cactus
My mom got a Christmas cactus from my grandfather, her father-in-law, when he passed away. She read all about it and took very good care of it. She tried really hard to get it to bloom. She tried sunlight, no sunlight, water, no water. No matter what she did, it would never bloom. She was able to keep it alive, though.
She and my dad went to Honolulu to visit my brother, who was in the Navy. They were gone for 3 months. During that time, my brother was refinishing the hardwood floors, and I was building them a new computer room as a surprise. So we were there every day the few weeks before they came home.
Unfortunately, my mom died on the airplane on the way home. The airline diverted the plane to Kansas City. We all drove down to the hospital. We ended up bringing home my dad the next day after having disconnected her from the machines that were keeping her alive.
When we walked into their house and went in the kitchen, the Christmas cactus was in full bloom. I believe it was a message from my mom. The Christmas cactus was not in bloom before that. We were there working on their house. We would have seen it.