My family name, comas diaz, means death and or dying in Spanish. As far as I can remember, I have experienced a special relationship with death. You see, death communicates in a strange way with me. That is, it lets me know when a loved one dies. For example, death speaks to me through premonitions, dreams, and physical reactions. My first memorable encounter with the death of a loved one was during a lucid dream. Dressed as a surgeon, I tried to save the life of a young man in an operating room. “I hope no one died in Puerto Rico,” I told my husband Fred when I woke up. “This dream was strange, ” I said. “Dream? That was no dream, you had a terrible nightmare all night long,” Fred replied. The absence of messages from family that day relieved my anxiety. When night approached, my cousin Alberto called. “Our young cousin Chalito was in surgery last night after a car accident, “ he announced. “Unfortunately, the doctors could not save him,” Alberto concluded.