Why is it that I feel completely creeped out and watched at the Eastern State Penitentiary, yet feel that the battlefield at Gettysburg is one of the most peaceful places in the world?

I’m sure part of it is architecture. After all, the penitentiary was partly designed so that guards could see inmates. I’m sure all those building materials (including metal) have trapped in energy of one type or another. It makes me wonder whether scenery affects how we feel about a place being haunted (or not).

What do you think?

Battle of Gettysburg by Currier & Ives. Public Domain Image.

My husband was giddy. When we went to visit Gettysburg recently, we decided to go on a ghost hunt. While the usual touristy stuff applied, it was a relatively inexpensive way for us (and other tourists) to learn about using the paranormal ghost-hunting equipment in a very hands-on way. Being a sensitive, I was particularly interested in the dowsing rods. My friend Staci came along for the tour, as well, and our group decided that I should start with the dowsing rods.

My husband ran off under the light of a full moon to try and catch some mist or EVPs. Like I said, he was giddy.

I thought about the wisdom in bothering potential spirits potentially existing near a mass grave of Confederate soldiers. I’m not going to lie…when it was my turn with the EVP, I did try to provoke a little bit, discussing the glory of my very own Irish ancestor who died at Antietam fighting for the Union. Nothing happened.

I had some odd success with the dowsing rods. Firstly, I learned that it was easy for me to subconsciously make them move. If I looked at them and thought “cross” or “left,” I could get the rods to move as I wished. While I wasn’t consciously trying to move them with anything other than my mind, I am sure the muscles in my hands somehow twitched to comply. I don’t think I’m telekinetic. Also, I was wearing metal jewelry (wedding ring and band), we were standing in a dewy field (dowsing rods are also used to effectively find water) and my body loves being near copper for some reason, so I’m not sure any of what I experienced with the rods could be classified as paranormal. At a couple of points, I really did feel like something else was moving the rod, but who knows.

My dear husband was disappointed over finding nothing. Most of the other tourists got bored after 20 minutes of ghost hunting. I wonder if they realize that the people on TV spend hours setting up and breaking down equipment, then more time investigating with no obvious result and reviewing hours of footage from multiple cameras? I knew before starting out that that type of ghost hunting isn’t for me. I’m open to a personal experience, though, and I’m glad I got to try all of the equipment.

More than anything, I felt like the battlefield at Gettysburg was peaceful–in fact, one of the most peaceful places I’ve ever been. I don’t know if that destroys the possibility of me actually being sensitive or what, but it’s the truth. I felt peaceful there. I might have had a better result with the paranormal had I sat alone on a field late at night.

A week later, I also learned that one of my favorite outdoor lunch spots in Philly is also a mass grave–a spot they buried people during the Revolutionary War and after public lynchings in the park (explains why the ground is so fertile there, I guess). I also feel pretty peaceful there.

What do you think that means?

Lightning and conductors: communication from gods or nature? Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain Image, author unknown.

I’ve always held two memories in fascination:

1) A conversation with a friend from high school who explained to me (from her perspective) the importance of community worship as well as her priest’s explanation.

2) A collegiate-level choir practice in which our conductor described the true role of the conductor as a conduit of energy and emotion.

Both instances still cause me to reflect a great deal, especially on my own spiritual practices. While I personally find greater success in communicating with the planet at large in personal solitude, I have experienced some serious reflection at Quaker services before. In this, I have realized that true reflection can contain a more objective view of myself, but it is often even more valuable when it provides the opportunity for me to view my peers without prejudice or personal opinion. While I can’t say I’ve totally achieved this state, certain conditions (overwhelming tragedy, peaceful spiritual reflection) do open that path.

What are the roles of community and conducting? I think that they can serve the same purpose. The community can collectively absorb and reflect a certain amount of hope or energy and the conductor (though not always necessary, in my opinion) can help the individuals work best together as a group. The conductor also holds a position of responsibility; she is the translator between energy/the divine and the audience/worshipers/performers. It is easy to see why the role of the conductor is often criticized in a religious setting, especially after centuries of corruption and the propagation of extremist branches in mainstream and fringe religions.

Some conductors may also conciously or subconsciously channel or pray, which can allow them to lead any group including a religious community gathered for a service. For more information, check out Jen Whitten’s article on prayer and channeling.

Fire. Public Domain Image | Awesomoman | Wikimedia Commons

I was a bit skeptical when my friend Danielle let my husband and me borrow season one of ‘Supernatural,’ but having an interest in the paranormal, I remained open-minded. The show follows the plight of two brothers, Sam and Dean. These men are the victims of a major paranormal occurrence in which their mother died in demon-induced flames.

The brothers go “hunting,” finding troublesome, creepy demons and ghosts that bother other people. Using rock salt, guns, crucifixes, and holy water, Sam and Dean seek to help others. They manage to make money running credit card scams (which…isn’t very helpful to others). About 95% of the time, the person in danger is a vulnerable twenty-something female in need of their serious anti-ghosty protection. This makes me roll my eyes.

However, Sam’s development of possibly psychic abilities is extremely interesting. Although he is a fictional character, I find it fascinating to watch how he both develops and copes with these abilities.

I will also complain about the pace of the show. It’s pretty slow through most of the season, but I’m glad I took Danielle’s advice in watching the entire season. The last few episodes in the first season are engrossing and fast-paced–even movie quality. I look forward to borrowing season two from her.

I do enjoy several aspects of the show, specifically:

• The fact that the episode writer(s) actually researched occult subject matter and lore
• Exploration of common and uncommon folk and urban legends
• Gradual, logical character development
• Realistic explanations for non-paranormal events
• Deductive reasoning employed by the main characters to solve paranormal problems
• Pace of story is not rushed
• Recurring secondary characters
• Continuity throughout series, much like ‘Firefly;’ the characters reference events of previous episodes
• Gratuitous rock and roll and ‘Ghostbusters’ references

Have you seen the show? How do you feel about it?

The Ghostbusters were a fun topic for a movie, but who would think that the amount of paranormal investigators (and people offering to rid clients of haunting spirits) would seriously rise twenty-some years later? When I met Dan Aykroyd at a liquor store (seriously), I couldn’t help but think on this–and on how people really capitalize on the paranormal. I’m not slighting people for doing that–of all people, Aykroyd has a right to do it–but the increased interest is staggering. In a boutique-y New Jersey town near me, we even have a local ghost hunting store. This store supplies customers with paranormal investigation needs and offers classes on paranormal investigation and psychic abilities.

Some people out there are selling tools for investigation–EMF detectors, for example. Others are legitimately selling classes. How much of it, I wonder, is simply people capitalizing on hype as they do with just about every other cultural trend and phenomenon?

Could this Chihuahua mix go paranormal? David Shankbone | Wikimedia Commons | Public Domain Image

I was watching a “Psychic Kids” episode (featuring Chip Coffey) when I realized that the show was tackling one of my questions about the paranormal: Is it possible for dogs and other animals to become ghosts? Religions seem to vary on whether dogs make it to the afterlife. One person might tell you that Heaven is only for a certain type of person, while another might hand you a copy of “All Dogs Go To Heaven.” For some, could a positive afterlife really be such without a pet?

It’s an altogether confusing topic for me. I once saw what I believed to be my animal spirit guide–a doe. Oddly enough, the very animal that cause a life-changing catastrophic car wreck for me in December was also a doe. Granted, more positive than negative came out of that accident, but I could have died and I’m having a bit of trouble squaring with my mortality. This led me to think about the topic again.

While I can say I’ve had spiritual experiences involving animals and breakthroughs in communication with my adorable but stubborn Boxer, I’ve certainly never had a paranormal experience involving a dog or any other animal. The kid on “Psychic Kids” said he frequently saw a black dog. I suppose it’s possible that an animal could also be trapped in some sort of limbo, just like a person. Belief or lack of belief in a spiritual system and a soul, in my opinion, has little to do with the physics of becoming a ghost. Dogs don’t have developed enough brains to comprehend spiritual systems, but that doesn’t mean they can’t become ghosts.

On the other hand, recent discussion here about demons and other paranormal aspects causes me to think further. An animal could be a more ominous representation of something or someone else–either a hallucination representing a subconscious idea projected by the person seeing it, or perhaps something that is not what it appears to be. (If you’ve played Dragon Age: Origins recently, you’ll know what I mean here.)

What do you think about paranormal dogs and other animals? Possible?

And she was translucent…

So, let’s look at this rationally before I pull out the flashlight and start telling campfire stories. It was either:

• A dream
• Old Hag Syndrome
• A child ghost standing beside my bed

Yeah, yeah…I know hallucination is always a good fourth option, but I don’t drink or do drugs and I wasn’t even on so much as a muscle relaxer from the prescription world. That’s going off the table. Then there were three.

A Ghost Dream?

This may well be a valid conclusion. How many times have you had a vivid dream where you really though you were awake? Oh…you haven’t? I have.

I suppose having a dream about a ghost child standing beside my bed is within the realm of possibility. I’ve had visitations in my sleep before. The problem with this is that I hadn’t fallen asleep yet. I know because Sunday was one of those nights where I traded off between staring at the inside of my eyelids, the ceiling and the alarm clock. No REM cycle. No dreaming for Jen.

And then there were two.

Old Hag Syndrome?

I’m no stranger to this one either. This is where you wake up and see an old woman staring at you from beside the bed. She often points in a menacing manner. In almost all reports from people, they’re paralyzed an unable to shrink away from her touch. Just as suddenly as she appears, the paralysis vanishes…along with the visitor.

Simple explanation: The Old Hag isn’t paranormal; she’s psychological. The paralysis isn’t a dark means of holding you prisoner; it’s the only thing that keeps you from acting out your dreams and hurting yourself in sleep.

As I said, I know her well. Me and the Hag go WAY back. She’s never once appeared to me as a child, but since she’s a figment of my imagination, it’s still possible. Well, wait…no. I had total freedom of movement. And there’s the fact that my cat could not only see her, but was trying to sniff her.

And then there was one.

Ghost Child?

Since 2:00-3:33 seems to be a hotbed of paranormal activity in general, I can’t rule out a ghost standing by my bed. In fact, I suppose it even makes sense for me to have a visitor at that time of night when there’s just a different feel to the air. The problem is that I don’t particularly care about learning why a ghost is next to the bed at that time of night. I want to be asleep.

Let’s face it – or I suppose, I’ll face it – my house is active. As long as there are no attacks, we all co-exist. I don’t attempt to make contact and it seemed content to do the same. Looks like that’s over. This is the point where I have to either do some hardcore meditation to see if I can pick up on the thoughts (which is quite frustrating when I usually expend all my energy trying NOT to pick up on anything), or I need to find my recorder and do an EVP session.

Ugh…I’ve gone nearly six years in this house without having to resort to this. For whatever reason, I don’t like the idea of EVP in my house. It’s already active enough. I don’t want to give anything else the green light to come play.

But I’ve got a problem. I can’t hear her. Once I got over the surprise of waking up to see a translucent child beside the bed, I realized she was talking to me…yet I can’t hear her. This isn’t the first time I’ve had this problem either. I can sense things, see things and know things, but I’m not clairaudient unless an angel is shouting a warning.

So what do I do? From experience – and the cat’s response – this isn’t demonic energy, but it’s not angelic energy either. I get the distinct impression I’m dealing with a human spirit. If anyone has a suggestion for how I can find out what this little girl wants without resorting to setting out the recorder, I’m open to it.

1. TAP Paramagazine: A Waste of Money and Magazine Paper (December 23, 2009)

2. Update on the TAPS Paramagazine Problem (March 3, 2010)

3. Update on the TAPS Paramagazine Problem Pt. 2 (March 3, 2010)

My intentions aren’t to spread lies about TAPS Paramagazine, and it isn’t to stretch the truth. The situations that I wrote about are my experiences, and in the second article, you will see I am not the only one who is dissatisfied with the manner in which TAPS Paramagazine treats people.

This morning, I had a reply in my inbox, from my father-in-law, who is a Baptist missionary, regarding my name change. He has, once before, cautioned me to “be careful” with my interest in the paranormal, not to go looking for activity, etc. In today’s e-mail, he expressed to me that he was genuinely worried about my interest in the paranormal, because he was afraid I was going to get hurt or something. He is also the same person who has said that most paranormal activity is demonic.

I have to roll my eyes at this, because I know better.

How can even Christians make a claim that most paranormal activity is demonic? Christians equate demons and the demonic with evilness and harm. However, I have seen many cases on television and film, and have read and heard about many cases in which the entity or entities haunting someone did not hurt them, but instead, were there to watch over a person, or simply because they were attached or have not moved on.

I will not deny there are demonic entities, as I have also seen, read, and heard about these cases, as well. However, I have heard less about these cases than I have about the cases involving benign entities.

I mean no disrespect to my father-in-law, but it’s laughable to be wary of a interest or hobby just because a group of people (Christians) believe that paranormal activity is almost always demonic.

I have never had an experience myself, nor have I been on an investigation. However, if I were to go on one, I know better to mess around with stuff that can bring on demonic entities. Also, I would be sure to go with an experienced investigator and know how to protect myself–against entities of any kind.

For those reading who are unsure of what to think about the paranormal–know that an interest in the paranormal is not wrong and will bring no harm if you are smart about the situations in which you place yourself. If you are unsure of what can bring on hauntings, read this to inform yourself.

Happy hauntings!

1) My general ability to ‘receive’ via dreams seems stronger in this house, including an exact dream depicting my husband’s father though I had never seen a photo of him nor heard a very specific description.

2) The warning of three nearly-empty bottles falling on me in the shower during one specific shower. Three days later, a piece of exercise equipment fell on my head, gave me a concussion and a laceration, and resulted in a long recovery time (I feel like this was a warning).

3) The smell of smoke in the house when there is nothing able to produce the smoke.

Fortunately, it seems like the spirit present is that of a friendly family member who tries to warn us of things! However, I wonder about renovation. It’s said that renovation really stirs up paranormal activity–both positive and negative. I wonder what else I’ll find here? At least I’m not living in the Villisca Axe Murder House!