WAITING ON THE SPIRITS

I guess it’s a failure of receptivity but I’ve never had a paranormal experience. That doesn’t mean I reject the existence of ghosts and other paranormal phenomena. Several of my co-worker nurses believe a few patients who died returned, usually to play tricks on a roommate or scare a night nurse. We only aggravate patients with pills and personal questions for a short while. Why wouldn’t the patients haunt family members who’ve been a pain in the neck for years?

I don’t see cemeteries as scary places because graves contain physical remains that quickly decay. Any self-respecting spirit would leave a long time before burial. Spirits aren’t tied to bones and the burial clothes, although both are a convenient way to portray something invisible.

In THE SHINING, Stephen King creates a world filled with ghosts and evil but I saw this world as the projection of a man’s mind, angry with his family and after giving up alcohol. Despite my lack of other world experience, I enjoyed the film, “The Sixth Sense,” and books by Charlaine Harris. The paranormal seems a good way to explore death and what we don’t understand.

The castles and very old stone or brick buildings I’ve visited were so cold that a person would have a hard time recognizing a cold touch or space. A documentary I watched showed convincing footage of haunting by soldiers, plantation owners, and slaves in old houses in the South. Old saloons were shown to have violent and evil spirits lurking in attics and cellars.

If a ghost or poltergeist ever visits me, I’m sure I’ll want to write about it. Ghostly stories don’t seem to have much to do with Halloween celebrations. I know a couple of kids who tolerate dressing up and collecting candy to please their parents. This year, I’ve heard several parents say they won’t buy costumes or decorate their houses, even if they have the money to do both. When there are people without food, it seems frivolous to collect candy. Families that save money on costumes and candy can send donations to Halloween Unicef. Crafty parents can make costumes but that takes time, more often than what’s available if a person works and takes care of a family.

There are those who believe we should celebrate every special day and never miss a chance to party or dress up. I’ve thought about offering apples rather than candy but apples are as taboo as unwrapped candy. Why does someone put razors in apples or poison in unwrapped candy? Because they are fed up with answering the doorbell on Halloween night or because they’re plain evil? I’m still more afraid of people in the flesh than of spirits. I will enjoy e-zines and anthologies with ghostly stories.

Have you experienced the other-world? Is Halloween one of your favorite nights?