Bill had travelled from England to Trinidad and Tobago to experience carnival. It was his first visit to these shores so he had the anxiety of a newcomer. Four days after carnival, which he found fascinating, I took him and a friend (with whom he had journeyed) to Mayaro not for a cool down fete but just to visit somewhere out of the hustle and bustle of the city and its environs.

We spent almost the entire day walking on the beach. He admired the scenery, was captivated by the coconut trees - which was seeing for the first time - and was almost hypnotised by the sea with the rolling waves making music in his ears. He was all smiles for almost the entire day. Every time he saw something new on the beach he had to make some pleasant remark.

The fishing boats moored on the beach filled his mind with visions of sailors conquering the sea. He remarked that the small fish found near the edge of the water, continually being tossed by the waves, seemed so happy and free. He longed to be a fish and enjoy the surf to the fullest.

At the end of the day when light began to fade and it was inevitable that we had to leave this seeming paradise he wished he could have remained much longer.

He said that the day was more than wonderful and he did not think that his friends in England would believe him should he tell them about this experience. He thought that this was the closest he could get to heaven while still here on earth. But he had to return home and continue his usual life.

We too have experiences in life that are similar to Bill's. There are those times when we leave the normal everyday world behind and we find ourselves enjoying a deep warmth in our heart. We are with friends and we are all happy.

There is an effervescent smile in our hearts. It may have been our wedding day, or perhaps our graduation day when we received a certificate or award for which we had worked long and hard.

It is at these times that we perceive what may be termed a foretaste of heaven. Intuition tells us that paradise must be somewhat like this and we want it to last.

It is at these moments that we feel the presence of the Father in our hearts and we know that we are His Beloved. We call to mind those of our loved ones who have passed away for we wish that they were here to relish this moment with us.

They appear to us like Elijah and Moses. We do not know what to say for we have an ineffable joy in our hearts. But this does not last and when we look around we see only the friends who had been with us all the while. We were transfigured on our mountain and we have to come back down.

Should we share this experience with those who will think that we are exaggerating? We prefer to keep it to ourselves. We'll be ready to talk about it to others when they have experienced something similar. Right now all we want to do is reminisce on what has happened.

And so we pray: Lord, we thank you for those moments in life when we experience a foretaste of heaven. It might have been our First Communion day or our Confirmation day, our wedding or graduation day. We had our friends with us and we felt your presence in our hearts.

We thank you for bringing to our minds those of our loved ones who had passed away. They are our Elijah and Moses. They helped us when they were with us and we have them as our mentors.

We are sorry for the times when we make others unhappy, when they could have had a beautiful experience and we ruined it because of our selfish behaviour. We were haughty, vain and conceited so that those around us were not able to go up the mountain with us and be covered in the cloud of happiness.

Send us friends and relatives who will be always with us to enjoy the fruits of this life. They will go up the mountain with us and be at our side to share our happiest experiences. It is with them that we discuss what “rising from the dead” could mean. It is with these friends that we live the resurrection .

Gospel Meditations for March are by Felix Edinborough, Managing Director of Catholic Communications Studios and a parishioner of St Anthony's, Petit Valley.