A gaunt man lay in a hospital bed, emitting phlegmy wheezes from his throat with each exhalation. He knew that he was approaching the end of his life, but he was unwilling to let go.
His beloved wife sat by his side, her eyes swollen from tears as she gazed at him. With his eyes closed, he could hear her wiping away her tears and sniffing.He struggled to open his eyes and looked at his wife. Her once sparkling eyes were now puffy and red from crying. He didn't know what to say, so he reached out his hand to her and held it tightly. He remembered all the times they held hands like this, without needing words, surrounded by harmony and sweetness.
But today, the air was heavy with solemnity and sorrow.
They both knew that time was running out because the doctor had just come to deliver the news his wife dreaded hearing.
The Angel of Death Arrived
Suddenly, he saw a dark shadow appear above the hospital room. Beneath the black cloak was a pale, gaunt face, and in its right hand it held an iron-black scythe.
The Angel of Death had come.
His wife sat motionless beside the bed, as if time had stopped.
The Angel of Death urged the man on while reaching out its hand to him. The man struggled to open his eyes and with all his strength pushed away the hand of the Angel of Death, his face showing helplessness and sorrow.
“I don’t want to go,” he said. “I still have so much to do.”
The Angel of Death replied impatiently, “Your organs have already failed in many places. You have no choice.”
The man said, “Even if it’s just one more week or one more day. I want to stay here. My wife needs me. I’m worried she won’t have anyone to take care of her.”
The Angel of Death frowned, revealing his impatience. He shook his head, having seen too many people struggle in their final moments. They could only delay the inevitable for a few more hours or days before finally having to leave with him.
The man suddenly stood up, determination shining in his eyes. He said to the Angel of Death, “I won’t go. I’ll stay here until I find someone who can take care of my wife.”
The Angel of Death stared at the man, his eyes growing even colder. He extended his hand again, trying to take the man away from this world. But the man refused to let go, struggling against the Death Angel's power.
The battle between the man and the Angel of Death had begun. The man felt a powerful force emanating from the Death Angel's body. His palm extended towards the man's body, trying to take him to another world.
The man felt his body growing weaker, and his breathing became increasingly rapid. He remembered his wife and the days they spent together, the beautiful memories that made him not want to leave.
Wrestling Like Jacob
These memories gave him unprecedented strength. He used all his strength to fight against the angel of death, and his body kept shaking violently.
The man remembered the story of Jacob wrestling with the angel in the Bible’s Genesis. Jacob’s wrestling with the angel is a story in Genesis (32:22-32) that describes Jacob’s wrestling with an angel at Jabbok Ford when he returned to Canaan.
“Only Jacob was left alone. A man came and wrestled with him until dawn. When the man saw that he could not defeat him, he touched Jacob’s hip socket and Jacob’s hip socket was twisted during the wrestling.” “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” “I have seen God face to face and my life has been preserved.”
The man suddenly stood up, his eyes shining with determination. He used all his strength to resist the power of the angel of death. He tried to imagine the scene of Jacob wrestling with the angel and imagined himself as Jacob…
As the man began to wrestle fiercely with the Angel of Death, he found that his opponent had amazing strength and every attack seemed to destroy him. However, the man was unmoved and his movements seemed to be in sync with his opponent’s attacks as if their bodies were one.
The man who had been lying quietly on the hospital bed suddenly began to shake violently and the bed creaked. The heart rate on the bedside physiological monitor gradually increased and the electrocardiogram began to beep. The man’s wife panicked and immediately pressed the intercom for the on-duty nurse.
The movements of the man and the Angel of Death became faster and more intense, their figures like two powerful energies colliding with each other, making a deafening noise in the man’s ears. The man’s breathing became more and more rapid, sweat was already on his forehead, but he still fearlessly fought with his opponent.
The on-duty doctor and nurse at the bedside began to prepare to rescue the constantly shaking man while his wife stood by wiping her tears. The man looked at his tearful wife and was filled with courage.
The Angel of Death felt the strong willpower emanating from the man and began to waver, his figure seeming to fade away. The man’s body gradually became stronger and he could feel that powerful force flowing through him.
The man’s face showed courage and determination, his eyes shining with passion. He pushed hard against the Angel of Death trying to push him out of the ward.
Before being pushed out of the ward, the Angel of Death pinched the man’s thigh hard. The man felt a burst of pain and temporarily stopped moving, just gasping for breath.
In this gap, the Angel of Death said to the man:
“You should know that everyone has their own destiny and death is inevitable.”
“I’m really worried about my wife. We don’t have any children and after I’m gone she’ll be all alone. After I’m gone is there any way I can continue to protect her?”
The angel of death thought for a moment: “You can continue to protect your wife in another world; you can become her guardian angel.”
The man felt relieved knowing that he could continue to protect his wife even after he had left this world. He decided to stop fighting.
Suddenly, the man’s body became still; his breathing became weaker and weaker; his heartbeat slower and slower until finally his soul left his body and entered another world.
His wife heard his last sigh; there was no longer any heartbeat on the bedside physiological monitor; only a straight line on the electrocardiogram; a continuous beep from the machine.
The man who had shed his physical shackles took one last look at his wife before following the Angel of Death away.
Guardian Angel
The Angel of Death carried the soul of a man through the sky and arrived in another world. The man saw a beautiful garden filled with flowers, animals, and many friends he had known before warmly greeted him. The air was filled with the scent of sunshine, and he could feel himself surrounded by unconditional love. The Angel of Death told the man that this was his new home, and he could continue living there.
The man thought of his wife, and in an instant, he was at their home. His wife was looking out the window, and she seemed to sense the man's presence, turning her head to look at him. The man felt very relieved; he knew he had become her guardian angel, and he could continue to protect her until she also left this world.
The man traveled throughout the garden, seeing many beautiful sights and meeting many new friends. But he never forgot his wife. Every time she thought of him, he was by her side, surrounding her and protecting her with his energy.
One time, she sat on the bed holding a pillow and crying. He surrounded her with his energy, reminding her of the day they got married. She picked up his ring that was in the drawer and felt that he was still with her, and stopped crying.
The man guarded his wife until she also left this world. They met again in another world and then lived together in the eternal garden.
