parapsychology
Orbs And Apparitions In My New House
Last week I saw something I never thought I would, even after years of living in a haunted house. I bought a brand new house in 1992 for this every reason – no more hauntings, apparitions and paranormal activity! I really never thought that my new house will become haunted too.
On February 9th, 2013, I was in the living room talking to my wife and I noticed that my three year old puppy, Peppermint, was standing in the kitchen looking up at the ceiling and wagging her tail. It seemed as if she was looking at something, or someone. I joked with my wife and said, “Look, Peppermint is looking at ghosts!” Peppermint was walking slowly, the way she usually does when she is approaching a person for the first time. Then suddenly she backed off really quick, but she did not bark. She was intrigued and cautious, but certainly not frightened. The scene reminded me of something I saw on a paranormal investigation TV show recently, so I followed my intuition and went to my computer room to grab my digital camera and my digital recorder. Continue reading
Care Of The Soul
One radical difference between care of the soul and a great deal of modern psychological work is that the former offers a profound appreciation for the personalities who are important in our lives, even if they are flawed people and even if the relationship is not perfect. Psychology prefers to analyze with the goal of increased understanding, yet understanding does little for the soul.
Imagine telling stories of those that have crossed over, not for insight into ourselves, but simply to establish a deep, continuing relationship with them. The soul is given eternity in that exchange, while understanding offers it little more than another fragment of logic. It has nothing to do with establishing a home for the infinite within our finite lives. Continue reading
Movie Psychics: Villains, Freaks, Heroes
Psychics and mediums in the movies are traditionally depicted as shrewd, flaky or simply evil. To this day it remains the exception to the rule to find a decent film or television show that genuine psychics will be able to relate to. Very few films in the archives offer a reasonably authentic representation of the ordinary psychic’s true life experiences.
The range of stereotypical stock characters in film is almost never-ending: from the typical dumb blondes and computer-hacking geeks, to corrupt Catholic priests, zany black cops, Las Vegas mobsters, flamboyant gay men, conspiring politicians, sex-obsessed teenagers and bombastic corporate executives with fat cigars.
Of course, psychics and mediums also make the perfect stereotype. We are ideal to be cast in the role of the satanic villain, or merely as an odd source of comic relief. For example, Whoopi Goldberg’s madcap portrayal of Oda Mae Brown, the fraudulent medium in Ghost (1990), was so well-received after the film’s release that she won a Golden Globe for her hilarious antics, as well as an Academy Award!
Hollywood relies on these stereotypes to increase box office success. Portraying misrepresented characters in a one-dimensional manner has a much wider audience appeal. Sadly, it also leads to ignorance, misconception, prejudice and discrimination. Continue reading