The Room is Dark

The room is dark. As you look around, all you see is a red light glowing in the corner.

The participants are sitting in a circle. They are feeling the excitement and energy as it begins to rise. At this point they are asked to sing in order to raise the energy higher in hopes that many from the spirit world come through.

There is a figure, called the medium in the middle of the circle. This medium then tells you to take three deep breaths and let go of your day. She asks everyone to listen to the prayer that is being channeled by her spirit guide. Her voice changes as she quietly says her prayer of protection and it resonates deeply with love and concern. The spirit guide assists the medium with her spiritual work and he is aware of everyone who sits in the circle. He will speak to friends and family of the participants who have left this world and now live on the other side and will bring there messages to the members in the circle.

Where are we, you might ask? What are we doing? We are holding a séance and it is being held in a dark room with a lamp that generates a soft red glow.

What is a séance? What does it mean and how can you benefit from it?

Séance is an attempt to communicate with your dearly departed love ones. It is a form of mediumship in which one or more dedicated people communicate with entities on another frequency. This is done with the help of a spirit medium who goes into a trance and theoretically allows the deceased to communicate through him or her.

The history of séance communication can be traced back to the third century.  The word séance comes from the French word for ‘seat,’ from Old French seoir, ‘to sit.’ In English, the word came to be used specifically for a meeting of people to receive spiritualistic messages.

Séances are typically conducted in dark or semi-dark rooms with participants seated in a circle formation in which a medium would speak under the apparent control of a spirit, relaying messages from the dearly departed. It can also be held in the light but dark is preferred because of the raising and lowering of the vibrations made by both worlds. We must understand that the medium is a channel for such communication. Not everyone has the right chemistry to become a medium and it takes much practice and patience to become a good one. Mediumship is not necessarily a supernatural endowment: it can be as natural as the gift of music or art, but certain gifts and graces are more developed in some mediums rather then in others.

Those who have passed on have never really died. They have changed from one plane of life to another. They come to communicate and guide us because of the Law of Attraction which is the governing law of nature. The spirit world also comes to help and protect us. They try to help us live on this earth so we can develop and gain the experience we need. When they come through to speak it is with love and concern. Séance can bring forth personal messages from spirit to the participants – messages of hope, comfort and meaning. Sometimes there is unfinished business that needs closure so spirit will try to relay that message. Messages are given in words, symbols, and feelings which bring memories and clarity to certain situations. When those messages are given to individuals in that circle it should be understood that all present must be open to receive.

When I conduct a séance, it is more often for personal messages channeled from my spirit guide Blue Feather, or from others in spirit who wish to convey memories and information to that evening’s participants. But séances can also be held to offer predictions about world events, healing sessions, dissertations, and physical manifestations – whatever the specialty is of the medium holding the séance.

My séance specialty is trance channeling; I have studied for twenty five years at various colleges and training facilities in Florida, Indiana and England. I’m a certified spirit medium and I have been trained to see symbols, hear spirit, and feel emotions. This is considered clairvoyant, clairaudience, and clairsentience.

During a séance, many things can happen, so it’s good to have a trained medium who understands what’s going on.

Normal procedure after a séance the medium should forget what transpired in messages that evening. I usually have dreams that night to which I release all that came to me in that séance but sometimes unique symbols manage to stay. I would like to share with you two incidences that I have not forgotten. I was able to see just the trunk of a car which really surprised me. I could have understood had it been the whole car but this was just the trunk. I asked the individual to whom I was relaying messages to what did that mean to her?  She laughed and explained that she conducted business out of the trunk of her car. It was easier for her that way then taking it into the house. The other incident believe it or not I saw a set of false teeth shown by the grandfather of the individual I was speaking with.  The memory of that story is that the grandfather use to take his teeth out and clean them in the kitchen just to tease the grandchildren.

Spirit has a beautiful sense of humor and they try hard to display it in séances. I create as much humor as possible but I also present a serious side so that all present will understand what is being expressed in words and memories. The other that I would like for you to know is that I love and enjoy what I do.

How Do I Tell My First Grandchild That I’m a Spirit Medium?

Joshua Isaac - (b) October 13, 2008 - 11:45 am - Malica, Spain
Joshua Isaac – (b) October 13, 2008 – 11:45 am – Malica, Spain

These thoughts were written prior to October 13, 2008 – The birth of Joshua Isaac

As I sit here and ponder what is about to happen, I smile.

My first grandchild, who happens to be a boy, is on the wayand I am amazed and overwhelmed. I used to tease my children, telling them not to have babies too early because it would ruin my youthful image… but now that this one is so close to arriving, my image doesn’t seem to matter anymore. I have many thoughts going through my head at this time, but one that jumps out is, how do you tell your grandson that you are a spirit medium?

How do you explain that you talk to “the other side” – to spirits and dearly departed family, friends and guides? When Iwas a child my grandmother always spoke about spirits and what happens when people pass over. She explained that our souls roam for three days after death, which could explain why people experience visions of loved ones shortly after their passing. This is usually followed by an adjustment period, a time of rest and recuperation, because leaving our loved ones on earth can be difficult.

Mama said we could see spirits and even hear or smell them. If you have ever experienced a fragrance that you associated with someone when they were alive on earth – and couldn’t detect the source of the smell – consider that it might be a relative in spirit attempting to make contact. Maybe you have heard a knock on the door or the windows rattling, for no apparent reason. That could be their way of letting you know that they are doing well and you need not worry. My grandmother always spoke to me with a gentle voice, and never once did I hear fear in what she was saying.

The world contains many cultures and religions – each of which holds strong, heartfelt beliefs. Not everyone believes in spiritualism and I’m sure many people actually fear the spirit world. As I grew older, I realized that family and cultural environment have much to do with how we see and feel. I’m sure that the way my grandmother spoke and presented the spirit world to me had a lot to do with how I accept it myself today. I also realize there is a drive in me to learn as much as possible about this “unseen” world.

My grandmother continues to advise me from the spirit world, the same as she guided me while alive. For example, in meditation many years ago, I asked my grandmother a question. By that time, she had crossed over and was a spirit herself. I could see her so clearly and to this day I have not forgotten. I wanted to know if my children would give me grandchildren when they were older and she told me that my daughter Maiteland would be the only one of my three kids who would have children. And she was right, even all those years ago. My sons, both of whom are now past forty have not had children and I feel they probably never will. My daughter Maiteland will shortly deliver her first child – my first grandchild.

And to answer my question “How do I tell my grandson that I am a spirit medium?” – I will do as my grandmother did. I will speak with a gentle voice and present him with many positive stories and good experiences so that he, too, will have no fears about the world of spirit.      – Reverend Janet M. Reynolds (YaYa) and Blue Feather

Bartow’s Historical Museum Enjoys Spirited Reputation

Robin Golden, museum assistant at the Polk County Historical Museum, looks over her shoulder in the basement of the museum. The facility, formerly the Polk County Courthouse, is known to be the site of some strange and ghostly happenings. Photo By Paul Johnson/The Ledger

By DONNA KELLY
The Ledger
http://www.theledger.com/article/20031031/NEWS/310310321?p=all&tc=pgall

Published: Friday, October 31, 2003 at 4:27 a.m.
Last Modified: Friday, October 31, 2003 at 7:59 a.m.

BARTOW — Not too long after she began working at the Polk County Historical Museum, Robin Golden started receiving reports that she had left lights burning in the building overnight.

Knowing she had turned out the lights before she left each day, Golden could think of only one explanation for custodians finding the rooms brightly lit — the resident ghosts were playing games with her.

“In this room the lights kept coming on,” Golden said, motioning toward the museum’s video room. “I finally said, `You all have to stop doing this or you will get me in trouble.’ “

The lights have remained off all night ever since.

These types of experiences were happening in the museum and historical library long before Golden was hired as the museum assistant — incidents that tend to gain prominence around Halloween.

Built during late 1908 and 1909, the domed brick-and-limestone building at Main Street and Broadway Avenue once housed the Polk County Courthouse.

“This has always been a violent place. Violence was on trial,” said Library Manager Joe Spann. “If there would be a focus or nexus for that type of thing, it would be here.”

But during his 20-plus years with the historical library, Spann has always felt safe.

“I’ve been here for hours and hours, and I’ve never felt threatened,” Spann said.

That’s not to say he hasn’t experienced some strange situations.

Approximately 10 years ago, Spann was working alone in his office a couple of hours after the library and museum closed.

“I heard someone walking down the second floor library,” he said, leaning forward in his chair. “I know as sure as I’m sitting here that there was someone in the hallway.”

But no one was. At least no one living.

According to Tampa-based clairvoyant the Rev. Janet Reynolds, who recently visited the old courthouse, Spann could have heard any of 12 different spirits that are in residence.

“I feel some of them are there because they are restless,” she said. “Some of them are there because they want to be there.”

In a building that has been the scene for a lynching, a fatal explosion in the boiler room, viewing area of the body of a slain marshal, and nearly a century of death sentences, there are plenty of stories that conjure the idea of ghosts.

In 1955, Judge Curtis Chillingworth and his wife, Mary, disappeared from their beach house in South Florida. Though their bodies were never found, eventually it was discovered that Judge Joseph Peel Jr. had the couple killed.

The Chillingworths were taken out in the Atlantic Ocean, locked in chains, tied to weights and thrown overboard.

Peel’s murder trial was moved to Bartow because of the notoriety of the case in South Florida.

Library and museum employees wonder if the Chillingworths’ spirits are responsible for a couple of unexplained happenings.

“Patrons have heard footsteps behind them and we think it has been Judge Chillingworth,” Golden said.

Patrons, people setting up museum displays, and custodians have also heard these footsteps.

And the judge may be responsible for the malfunction of locks in the building.

“We think the problem we have with locks has to do with the judge,” Spann said. “Some of them don’t operate or operate backwards.

“We keep his picture on the wall upstairs. We want him to know that we recognize he is here,” Spann said.

Golden said other suspicious incidents inside the old courthouse building include the presence of “The Lady in White,” who appears as a human; elevators running without reason; screaming coming from the boiler room; visitors feeling something touching their hair and neck; and cold spots in various rooms.

The areas where Reynolds felt the most foreboding presence were the rotunda, video room and the boiler room.

The rotunda was where the slain marshal laid in state, Golden said.

Reynolds also felt some good vibes.

“The one room I felt good in was an old court room,” Reynolds said. “There was a lot of humor there.”

Like Spann and Golden, Reynolds isn’t afraid to be in the building, even in those areas where she has had negative reactions.

“I didn’t feel any fear. I only felt what happened,” she said.

Golden takes the seemingly paranormal activity in stride and attributes it to the historic atmosphere in the building.

“When you think about what went on in here and how many lives were changed, you can see how they might be trapped spirits,” Golden said. “I believe in angels, so why not believe in spirits?”

http://www.theledger.com/article/20031031/NEWS/310310321?p=all&tc=pgall