Ray Liotta

From IMDb - "Intense is the word for Ray Liotta. He specializes in psychopathic characters who hide behind cultivated charm. Even in his nice guy roles in Field of Dreams and Operation Dumbo Drop, you get the impression that something is smoldering inside of him."

Last weekend my kids asked me if I saw a bright light when I was in my coma. I can't remember what prompted the conversation but I assure you we were just joking around. I told them no, but I did see the Angel of Death twice.

They stopped giggling and replied in a very serious tone, "really?".

"Yes, remember your dad almost died several times while he was in the hospital." was my wife's response to them.

"What did he look like?"

"Ray Liotta, from Wild Hogs." I said in a very serious tone. Laughter erupted in the car again.

I was serious though. I don't know why my mind made this angel look like Ray. I just remember he was very rough looking. Leather jacket and scruffy face. Scary yet handsome at the same time. He came to me twice. Both times I was on a gurney by an elevator. I was paralyzed, unable to move an inch (ironically, I was paralyzed when I woke up from my coma also). He was standing at the end of the rolling table waiting for the elevator doors to open. He told me it was time to go. I protested and told him I wasn't ready yet. I needed to stay for my family. He didn't like it but agreed and that was it.

The second time he came he told me I didn't have a choice this time. I again protested saying I wasn't ready to go, pleading that I needed to be here for my kids. They still needed their father. After a bit, he told me OK and left me be.

When I got home I started doing some research on the real Ray Liotta. I laughed a little when I read the quote in IMDb at the top of this post. The real Ray seems to be a lot like his angelic counterpart. To this day I still have problems falling asleep worried that I'll run into Angel Ray again and this time I won't be able to tell him no. What bothers me even more is I don't know which way that elevator was going to go. Up or down.