was clear to me that this was not the work of any spirit presence. It was poltergeistal activity—energy attracted by Stephen’s deeply emotional state. It had built up over a period of time, feeding on the emotions Stephen was releasing into the atmosphere, recharging and growing each day until it had built up enough to create noises and move objects around the home.
I called upon Sam. ‘The atmosphere must be cleansed,’ he told me. ‘The negativity must be broken down in order to diffuse the build-up of power.’
I talked to Jean and explained the situation to her. I told her that Stephen’s unhappiness and insecurity were attracting the negativity into the home in much the same way that a moth was attracted to the light. I asked her whether she could find it within herself to contact her husband and allow him to see the two children. Stephen would then be able to rebuild his relationship with his father and maybe the deep rejection he was experiencing would be dispelled. This in turn would stop him from sending out his unhappy thoughts into the ether, thus starving the energy build-up. Reluctantly, Jean agreed. In the meantime, I conducted a candle rite in order to cleanse the house of negativity. That, together with Stephen’s happier thoughts in the weeks to come, would diminish the negativity to a point where it would disappear completely.
I visited the home on three consecutive days. Each time I performed a candle rite and prayed for the family to be relieved of the burden they were enduring. Meanwhile Jean contacted her former husband and agreed that he could once again play a part in their children’s lives. Stephen became much happier once he found that his father still loved him just as much as he ever did.
Starved of the unhappy emotions Stephen was releasing into the atmosphere, the energy lost its power, and as suddenly as the unpleasantness had begun, it stopped. The family were at peace once more. The situation may not have been exactly as Stephen would have wished, but at least he knew that he could see his father and that he still loved him.
CHAPTER 6 Ghostly Communication
I am fortunate. I am both clairvoyant and clairaudient, which means that I can both see and hear spirit people. If a person who has passed into the world beyond wishes to speak to me, they can do so. However, I cannot command or demand that they do so. I cannot order a spirit person to suddenly appear and speak to me. I can only ask, and if they wish to do so, then they will. I communicate with them either directly or through Sam. If it happens that a spirit person has not been over on the other side long enough to learn how to communicate with me directly, they will tell Sam what they want to say and he will pass on their messages to me. As I have said, I am fortunate.
If a person in this world does not have the gifts I and other mediums possess, then the people in spirit have to show their resourcefulness by communicating using other methods. A common method of bringing themselves to the attention of those in this world is through the sense of smell. How many times have you been in a room and thought that you smelled the aroma of pipe smoke or the scent of a flower? How many times have you fancied that you have smelled the perfume of a loved one who has passed on to the spirit world? This is your family members communicating. They use familiar smells to bring themselves to your mind—maybe the smell of a pipe smoked by a grandfather, of the cigarette brand used by a favourite uncle, of a newly baked pie brought by a grandmother whose house always smelled of cooking. They all evoke our memories and bring to mind the loved one who is trying to let us know that they are around us always.
Another method commonly used by people in the spirit world to draw our attention to them is the movement of objects. So an ornament that was once the property of a loved one may have inexplicably moved, a curtain may twitch in a draughtless room or a framed photograph may fall over. These are all ways in which our loved ones in spirit let us know that they are still around, caring for us and guiding us.
There are also times when a spirit person who is unknown to us may wish to let us know that they are around. This is often experienced in hotel rooms, especially when the hotel was once a home. A kettle may suddenly switch itself on or a wardrobe door may swing open for no apparent reason. It is merely a former resident letting you know that they are still visiting their home or a special place which holds a particular memory for them.
Séances
The word séance (French for ‘a sitting’) is used to describe a group of people gathered together for the sole purpose of invoking a spirit or spirits from the world beyond ours. I consider it important that such a group is headed by an experienced medium, though this is not absolutely necessary.
The people involved, usually six to eight in number, arrange themselves in a circle. I find that better results are achieved if the same people take part each time. A table may be used. This is not a necessity, though it is preferable.
The people taking part must place both feet on the floor—there must be no crossed legs or ankles. This is to ensure a clear channel for spirit communication. The physical body is surrounded by an energy field known as the aura, or auric field. In order to help a spirit person to communicate during a séance it is important that there are no restrictions on that energy field. If a person crosses their legs or ankles whilst taking part in a séance this would result in what I would call a ‘crossed energy polarity’. Any person taking part in a séance needs to be in tune and in balance to receive the best spirit communication.
The people involved should either join hands or, if a table is being used, should place their hands palms down upon its surface with the little finger of each hand touching the little finger of their neighbour on either side, thus maintaining a chain of energy. Everyone should be relaxed and comfortable.
The people should then close their eyes and empty their minds of all thoughts, whilst the medium, as head of the circle, recites a prayer of invocation and protection for both themselves and the people taking part in the séance. It is imperative that this is done. When invoking the spirit realms it is impossible to predict the nature of the spirit or spirits who will come.
Once contact with the spirit world has been established through the medium it is no longer absolutely necessary to maintain physical contact with the neighbouring person and people may rest their hands on their lap or on the tabletop, but with the palms upwards. This is also so that there are no restrictions on the auric field. Sitting with the palms of the hands facing upwards keeps the energy field of the physical body open. If a person were to sit with their hands clasped together or arms crossed, then that is again a crossed energy polarity.
The first sign of spirit presence is usually a noticeable drop in the temperature in the room, or even a cold draught which can be felt passing around the circle of people. The medium will then attempt to communicate with the spirit entity.
A séance should end with the head of the group thanking the spirit communicator(s) for their presence and efforts. It is at this time that any spirit entity should go back to the spirit realms that they inhabit. To help them achieve this, a prayer of thanks and protection should be offered. This could be the Lord’s Prayer or any other prayer which is considered appropriate.
A séance should not be confused with the ‘circles’ held in Spiritualist churches or meetings. These are held for the development of mediumship. There are also ‘rescue circles’, which are when established mediums try to bring peace to earthbound entities and enable them to pass into the light of the higher side of life, and ‘healing circles’, when members of the Spiritualist church community gather together to request healing for people who are sick or needing the help of the world of spirit in overcoming the difficulties that are sometimes brought onto our life’s pathway.
Many years ago I used to sit regularly in circles, one of which was a development circle for up-and-coming mediums. There were seven of us, four ladies and three gentlemen. We sat once a week on a Thursday evening in a room at my home. After a couple of weeks together as a group we started having very good results with our spirit communications.
One particular evening one of our sitters did not