Life Among the Dead

Time does fly, and times do die- entire worlds kick the bullet and bite the bucket.  But, death is much over hyped- all there is- the changeless, changing.  Re-arranging.  Every Now, and that's a lot- but what else is there to do?

Well, change!  O.K.- that word has been beaten to death.  But man, is it needed, the good kind- the best kind.  Less materialism, more of the Big Picture.

And here's my contribution:  Start believing in spirits. 

Yup.  Start believing in spirits.  You know, here in America you're written off as a New Age wing-nut the minute you say such a thing- even if you might hold such tenets, contemplating them, let alone acting on them- why contemplate the Dead? 

Well, first reason:  dead? maybe not so much.  And they haunt our lives, ready and willing to help- not so much with logistics, as encouragement, solace, inspiration.  The mature ones anyway.

In many cultures, these non-incarnate entities are taken for granted-  the dear grandmother who made you animal pancakes and loved you, loved you, loved you is not just alive 'in the memories' of those that live on-' as Secularists tend to hold.  She's actually still around, very possible helping you out where she can- and loving you still............

Lately I've been studying a bunch on this topic- and thinking very critically, or at least I hope so-  watching a show on cable that typifies some of the Whaaaaaa? factor of curious minds on this subject..........my critical mind shorts out watching it- so help me out here People.  You probably haven't seen the show.........

.............O.K.  So, here's a British medium (Lisa Williams, 'My Life Among the Dead') who takes us out of her house, and her adorable family,  to walk the streets giving readings to strangers, or in her office.  She's utterly sweet, pleasingly plump, sort of like Princess Diana with some of the snappy, fun persona of Liza Minelli.  She walks up to someone,  or sits down with them, and proceeds to give them info on a 'passed over' loved one, speaking with spirits in real time- spouting specifics that click so firmly, the person is usually weeping within seconds,

How?  How could anyone pull this off?

A couple ways;

- cold reading

-confederates

- research

-uncanny weirdness.

Let's take them one at a time.

Cold reading.  This is where you lead the gullible with the general.  For instance, making educated guesses based on dress, manner, etc, and following responses.  "I feel you want love/happiness but haven't had as much as you'd like in life.............." etc.  This explanation won't fly with Lisa- she's way too detailed without any prelude or feeling her way along.

Confederates.  So all these folks bursting into tears are actors.  Frauds.  If this is true, then Meryl Streep is a lightweight.  Robert DeNiro is a hack.  No,  gotta throw this one out.

Research.  In this scenario, Lisa has a crew of detectives, delving into the depths of personal info of her victims, such as what Granny called you as a girl, or the private things like what one's dead husband or wife told you behind closed doors.  How hard would this be?  Quite.  And, you'd have to squeeze these facts from a very small circle of intimates indeed,  if you could find them anywhere-  who would rarely choose to be part of such a deception.............

So, I'm left with two alternatives.  Lisa is reading their minds, on the spot, or she's really, really, in touch with Dead People............anyway, if you ever get a chance to see her show, (2 seasons aired already), do so.  She's radiant and amazing.

Yeah, I'm really interested in this topic these days, and will continue to throw up evidence as I see fit here on Eyes in the Pine.

I haven't been blogging much, and some of you might recall my rather radical forays into the Unknown last year- well, suffice to say I'm much more sort-of normal and grounded, if a bit less creative..........for now!

Change.  Get used to it!