Shortly before her earthly end, Eldress Gabrielia had a miraculous experience. A few days before he departed for heaven, Saint Porphyrios called her in Leros to say goodbye, just before December 1991. The incident is narrated by N.M., her beloved child and eyewitness:
"I am calling you to say goodbye. I am leaving for Kavsokalyva."
They talked for a long time. At one point he said to her:
"Sister, why aren’t you sitting down?"
She, beaming with joy, sat down and they made a rendezvous first for prayer and then for heaven. They said a lot and I saw her happy and content, while at that time she was not in very good health. After three months she departed for heaven. I asked her why she was standing while she was talking to Elder Porphyrios and she said to me:
"I feel like a gendarme being spoken to by his commander. I couldn’t speak. First of all, where did he find my phone number?"
And then she said to me:
"The unexpected determines destiny. And what is destiny? That I will meet Elder Porphyrios and I am very happy about it. My destiny is to meet him. Why? Because we come from one eternity, we meet, we love each other and we go to another place, which is the kingdom of heaven. I cannot question the kingdom of heaven when Elder Porphyrios calls me!"
Source: From the book The Eldress of Joy: Nun Gabrielia Papagiannis by Nun Philothei. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
"I am calling you to say goodbye. I am leaving for Kavsokalyva."
They talked for a long time. At one point he said to her:
"Sister, why aren’t you sitting down?"
She, beaming with joy, sat down and they made a rendezvous first for prayer and then for heaven. They said a lot and I saw her happy and content, while at that time she was not in very good health. After three months she departed for heaven. I asked her why she was standing while she was talking to Elder Porphyrios and she said to me:
"I feel like a gendarme being spoken to by his commander. I couldn’t speak. First of all, where did he find my phone number?"
And then she said to me:
"The unexpected determines destiny. And what is destiny? That I will meet Elder Porphyrios and I am very happy about it. My destiny is to meet him. Why? Because we come from one eternity, we meet, we love each other and we go to another place, which is the kingdom of heaven. I cannot question the kingdom of heaven when Elder Porphyrios calls me!"
Source: From the book The Eldress of Joy: Nun Gabrielia Papagiannis by Nun Philothei. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
