seances

Over the past 2 days I have been at some very different seances using physical mediumship with some widely differing results.

On Thursday we went to the senace at the Witch - partly to see if Isabelle would come through again which would have been truly awesome. She didnt. However what did happen was very interesting. The medium leading us (Kelly) was trying to communicate with someone she beleived was the mother of one of the other people round the table. Kathleen was clearly NOT taking everything Kelly was saying and looked puzzled. I got a name -Rosemary - whihc it turns out was her sister's name. Then a little later I asked if her mother's name was Mary and her face lit up like a belisha beacon. I felt humbled to get such a response for saying something so simple. We also did a oija board session which was interesting especially as Claire Green appeared to come through with a message for her family. But I remain sceptical about messages obtained this way and feel we have a real dilemma about what is anything to say to anyone.

Then later in the cellar Tony chanelled again and it was weird looking at him. I knew Tony was sitting stil - but I coudl see him rocking slightly and shifting his hands. And the person he chanelled was very nervous. yet again the story Tony got was corroborated by Karl and Shaz as one they had before.

I left feeling exhilerated and with a real feeling of progress in my own abilities and the feeling we really had encounted something paranormal.

Fast frward 24 hours and we went to the Falstaff's experience. We had been told this was really actoive and that we needed to have our protection up. So I was ready for anything. There were 16 of us in the group . After the lit walk round, and the walk round with the medium we were able to do some lone vigils. Nothing really mind blowing came through. certainly nothing that fitted with anything verifiable.

Then we were spilt into 2 groups. Our group included a group of 4 all newbies one of whom was ultra sceptical who seemd to have gone to the karl Beattie school of ghost hunting. Tom Morley (the medium) led us in 'human dowsing - the 'yes/no' technique I learned at Paul McKenna's workshop. The theory in the paranormal as that in that state a spirit can enter your aura and affect you by making you sway and move and even by raising your arms. Not much to my surprise since I have felt wobbly in ordinary seances I was quite affected by this as was Tony. When Tom was debriefing us the ultra secptical man said it looked as if we were responding to hypnosis. Since I know how close guided meditation is to hypnosis I can see what he meant . I am not sure whether wjat I did was 'spirit' led or' me' led.

Then we moved to be led by Alison to do a oiuja board session. The other gorup got really good results but we didn't. We could get moevment but all our questions got the answer no. Then the sceptical guy said he thought I was pushing the planchet. So I stepped out - and actually left the group early to go back to the base for some fresh air. The room felt really flat - and to be honest I was upset. I know I wasn't conciously pushing the planchet - but I did wonder if I had been subconsciously pushing it.

When everyone else came back for a break mr sceptic and is 2 companions left the event - and I found out Alsion and Tom were both annoyed about this groups attitude and Alison was very annoyed that I had been accused of faking the planchet.

The last session we did as a group in the seance room )an area where I had felt activity during the medium walk round) and as a group we got energy gooing and got some very interesting things to happen - including a big heavy table moving quite a lot. The glass was also VERY active.

So did the group of sceptics actually damp down the energy and prevent things from happening? Was that why we kept getting 'no' on the ouija board? And is there a psychological reason why the remaining 12 of us - all open minded at the least - could get more activity?

The contrast between the two events - and even the two halves of the same event - is amazing and has me wondering more about the psychological aspects of investigation. I am not going to lie and say the attitude of that sceptic didn't spoil Falstaff's for me. It did. Falstaff's was not the exciting place I thought it would me. But I would like to go back and see if its better another night. But I am going to see if it is possible to verify the existence of a Hubert K (King? Knighton?) with 6 children aho died in 1664 at the age of 43 - who was the person who came through when the glass really got going in the seance room at the end.

But in the end does it matter if an investigation goes pearshaped? Having found I did reiki one of the participants asked where I practiced and I think would have booked an appointment if she lived anywhere local to me. My reiki is still very real.