Since Halloween is just around the corner, I thought it was fitting to share an experience that was both intense and amazing. Despite all of my years of study in the metaphysical and paranormal areas, I had never participated in a séance. As I owned a paranormal shop, it seemed fitting when the request was brought to me that a private séance might prove to be an interesting endeavor. A friend and her husband had just lost a dear friend to suicide and she wanted to know that he was okay, so we set a date.
     When conducting a séance, we knew it was important to choose participants wisely. We did not wish to have anyone present who would spook easily, cry or scream, so we put a lot of thought into who would be asked to participate. We ended up with six people - Jeff, Marcus, Hanny, Scott, Becky and myself. Interestingly, we all had metaphysical background of sorts, but none of us had ever been a part of a séance yet, when all was said and done, we realized we had chosen very wisely. We worked beautifully together in a calm and logical manner.
     Before beginning, careful setup was required. In my shop was a large table able to seat six perfectly. We placed four large quartz crystals on the floor, one at each corner of the table and a bit out to allow our table and chairs to be within, making sure each crystal could see the other three. Then we hung a quartz crystal pendulum from the overhead light to form the tip of the pyramid. This was our pyramid of protection, so to speak. Four candles in solid holders were placed on the table as well to allow us decent light once we began our séance. A video camera was then placed in position to allow full view of the table and its occupants and a tape recorder was placed off to the side.
     Once everyone had arrived, we took our seats and allowed Jeff to bless the séance and call in our guides and those spirits who could help us connect up to the friend we were attempting to contact. No one in the group except Hanny, Marcus and myself knew the circumstances behind the death of this friend. The blessing lasted about 15 minutes. After it was over, we joined hands. We went around the table with palm up, palm down, then palm down, palm up, until all hands were joined. Jeff remained silent, so I took the opportunity to request our guides to bring in the young man who had taken his life.
     It wasn't long before I noticed that Scott, who had hands joined with Hanny and his wife, Becky, was leaned over to the side with his head slightly down, looking as though he were in pain. I also noticed that he was squeezing Hanny's hand very tightly to the point of turning her fingertips white. I asked if he was okay. We had all spoken beforehand about being observant and watching one another's backs just in case we ran into something unpleasant despite our careful preparation to protect our group.
     Scott began to weep silently, tears flowing freely as he said how sorry he was. He explained that what had happened was a complete accident and that he was very sorry that it had turned out as it had. He knew that he had caused pain and upset in the lives of his family and friends and wished he could change what had happened. He was staying around out of guilt and afraid to cross over as he did not know what judgment awaited him.
     During this time, Scott continued to weep. Not to be gross, but he was so in tuned with this soul that snot ran freely from his nose, mortifying his wife. Scott did not notice. After he was allowed to speak his peace, Hanny spoke to him quietly. She told him that they understood and that they were not angry with him. She told him that they wanted him to know how much they all loved him and that it wouldn't be long before he would see everyone again if he would just allow himself to advance forward. She told him how much he would be missed, but not to feel guilty any longer as guilt would not serve him and that they all just wanted to make sure he was okay and at peace. We then asked him if he could see the light and if he would be willing to cross over into it. We did not receive an answer to this, but watched as Scott came back to us slowly, suddenly realizing the state he was in and attempting to rectify his appearance with Kleenex provided by his wife.
     When he was back to himself, we asked him if he felt the young man leave. Scott said that, as Hanny talked, he could feel the emotions of the young man and slowly felt as though the burden of guilt was being lifted. He said he felt him leave and believed that he had, indeed, moved on.
     Though we had achieved the main purpose of the séance, we continued as I wished to explore the spirit whom several people had seen in my shop. We brought this up and waited to see what would happen. Hanny and Becky asked a few questions of the spirit in the shop and, suddenly, I had the need to begin speaking in tongues. This is something I had begun doing at a church in Minneapolis many, many years ago. At the church, I had the urge to stand up and speak when asked if anyone had a message. I stood up, opened my mouth, and a string of words came out that I could not understand. Though I took French and German in high school, I never learned to speak either one fluently. I apologized, feeling embarrassed as none of the people at the séance knew about my ability to speak in tongues, but then had the presence of mind to ask if anyone could interpret what I was speaking. Though there was a bit of discussion concerning what language and dialect it might be, no interpretation was forthcoming. At that point, we all heard the video camera shut off and I knew the disc was full.    
     Releasing hands and rising from my chair, I stepped out of the pyramid to change discs in the camera. While standing by the camera, I heard someone say, "Be careful." I wasn't certain who had said it as the voice was very deep and did not sound like anyone's voice within the group. I responded with, "I will" and left it at that for the time being. Later, Scott had stated that he had seen, from the corner of his eye, a large, dark shadow by the inside door to the shop and it felt menacing. He watched it, peripherally, move along the wall behind my sales counter and attempt to go through the walk in closet which had a door at each end. The door on the opposite end came out right where I was standing changing the disc. The dark shadow seemed to hover at the front of the walk in closet as though it was not able to go through. This is when Scott said, "Be careful," though he did not realize he was going to say it which could account for the fact that it wasn't his voice. Even Becky, his wife, said she looked at him strangely because she wasn't sure he had even said it. After speaking about it later and finding out what Scott had seen, we agreed that the shadow was not able to enter the closet due to the expansion of the energy from the quartz crystals we had set around our table. We could all feel the energy in the room. In fact, throughout the entire séance, I had goosebumps that ran up and down my body in a constant motion - a bit uncomfortable, but also a sign that we were not alone.
     It wasn't too long after this that we decided to end the séance as we were not getting any answers from the spirit that had been seen in the shop. We thanked our guides and any spirits who had come in to help us reach the young man and released hands. We blew out the candles and turned on the lights so we could sit around the table and discuss all that had happened. It was at this time that Hanny and Marcus explained who the friend was and what had happened to him. Scott did his best to describe how he'd felt during his "channeling" experience, but it was difficult for him. He mainly remembered feeling tremendous sadness and not being able to stop his tears.
     Everyone was amazed at what had transpired as we all knew, oftentimes on the first try, nothing happens. I believe it was the dynamic of the group, the energy and the intent that we brought to the table that made this séance a success. We also played it smart by surrounding ourselves with protection through the crystal pyramid and each of us had our own form of protection on our bodies as well.
     We were able to watch the taping on a small TV several days later. The video camera took small discs and I could not play them on my computer which was very frustrating. We made the mistake of not putting the tape recorder directly on the table also, instead setting it off to the side, so it recorded quietly and was difficult to hear. We did, however, catch some evps on the video tape which we are currently trying to figure out a way to get onto the computer to analyze further. We would also like to figure out what I was saying when speaking in tongues, but may never determine this unless someone hears it who is blessed with interpretation.
     All in all, we all agreed it was a very satisfying, wonderful experience. There was nothing scary about it as we did not go into the séance with any thoughts of something bad taking place. As with anything that is considered out of the norm (séances, Ouija boards), it is the intent or your expectation that can make it a pleasant experience or not. Protection is always a good idea for, just as there are good and bad people walking the Earth, there are also good and bad spirits on the other side of the veil. A wise person will always protect themselves when delving into the unknown.