IF YOUR HEART is open to the possibility, you'll see signs of your loved ones, even after they've left this earth.

That's what I believe, anyway, and so do a lot of others, based on stories heard in recent weeks.

They're not creepy tales from the crypt, but comforting reminders that even though those we love have moved on to a better place, they're still with us.

The stories started with the family of Roger Wright, the Rappahannock Electric Cooperative worker who was killed in a helicopter crash in June 2003.

His wife, Tracy, and children, Randy and Courtney, have been touched, and sometimes, awed by the signs around them.

For instance, soon after Roger's death, folks in Caroline County dedicated a tree in his honor at the field where he loved to coach youth baseball.

In the midst of the ceremony, a hovering helicopter appeared.

Now, choppers come and go from nearby Fort A.P. Hill all the time, but this one flew really low and lingered for what seemed liked a long time--and you'd better believe everyone at the ceremony noticed.

There have been times when Tracy was down, and she turned on the radio, only to hear a certain tune she and Roger enjoyed or a song played in his memory at the funeral. Once, at the beach during family vacation, Tracy was feeling really alone when a blackbird appeared--and landed on the chair beside her.

It wasn't a seagull or some bird routinely seen at the beach, but a raven that cawed at her for a few moments before it pounced on the cooler.

That's when Tracy was sure it was a sign from Roger, a bear of a man who was always looking for something to eat. No wonder the bird went right for the food, she thought.

Carol Graham, who used to live in Stafford County, believes her husband, Mark, heard from his sons at the moment he needed it most.