As paranormal investigators, we all start out the same way: excited, scared, exhilarated, curious and completely passionate about investigating the world of spirit wherever it might manifest itself. Over time, we build reputations, book venues, go to conferences, make a name for ourselves, do lots of posting on social media, take a million photographs and upload countless audio clips. It doesn’t happen all at once, but one day we feel–dare I say it–bored with the whole thing.
Let me be clear: I’m never bored with the world of spirit, or the quest to find out who or what is secretly and subtly occupying a home. That is fascinating and always will be. No, it’s boredom with our methodology, our questions, our endless gadgets and even our very language. I’m tired of the WORDS we have at our disposal: EVP, ghosts, paranormal, anomalies, apparitions, shadow figures, demons, dark eyed children, etc. etc, ad nauseum. I’m tired of Ghost Radar, Ghost Boxes, Spirit Detector, Ouija Boards (no! don’t touch them! blah blah blah), every single “paranormal” app on my iPhone, every radio that’s been altered to pick up voices from the beyond and all of the various cameras, thermals, night vision devices, and so on that we all use. I USE THESE DEVICES, so don’t yell at me for not understanding them. The problem is that I DO understand them; most of the time, I think we are dealing with silliness and prearranged dictionaries meant to inspire awe in novice investigators. Very rarely do they yield anything of true interest, or anything that can be documented as paranormal. In combination, they can be very effective at pointing to something strange occurring in a location; or, are they simply a distraction from true divination of spirit?
I love investigating, but I hate staring at my phone. This is entirely my fault; I know I don’t have to. The apps seem to promise easy communication, something quick that requires no work on my part. I don’t have to go deep into myself to connect with someone who is trying to tell her story. It’s the same problem with Ghost Boxes and AM scanning devices. All my time is spent straining to hear words that may or may not mean anything. I am not entering into that meditative state that is the precursor for spirit contact. I can’t; the distractions all around me, the sounds of my own phone (on airplane mode, of course), the blinking lights on EMF detectors, the dots and blobs and Ghost Radar, all those things keep me out of my head and paying attention to objects, not people. I’ve felt so disconnected every since our lives became “connected” through social media and a million apps, that I no longer feel spirit in my life. My chronic distraction has ruined ghost hunting for me.
The result is boredom and frustration. I’ve been on investigations where I’ve felt on the verge of connection with something in the room, or perhaps with memories still haunting a location, when suddenly a device goes off and I lose it completely. This spiritual connection is HARD WORK and requires concentration. I’ve been lazy lately, deciding that all the techno crap can do the work for me. I think that needs to stop. What I need, what always worked best for me, were the following items: a pen, a pad of paper, an audio recorder, a camera and maybe a hand held night camera. That’s it. That’s all the Paranormal Housewives ever needed to get jaw-dropping EVP. We used to enter into meditative states and wait. For some people, I’m sure that was terribly boring–but to truly meld your consciousness with someone else’s, you CANNOT rush things, you CANNOT distract yourself with bleeping, blaring junk, and you MUST be willing to sit quietly in the dark for long periods of time without talking, laughing, squirming, whispering or poking the person next to you.
I’ve burned out on investigating because I’ve lacked discipline. I’m sick of feeling like I need to entertain myself or others. From now on, I am hiding my phone in my purse, and I refuse to look at it for the number of hours the investigation takes. It was such a cool idea: your phone can connect you to the dead! You don’t have to work at it anymore! But alas, no–it doesn’t work. It may seem old fashioned, but the best evidence for life after death came from seances where no technology was used at all, simply because it did not exist. What did those researchers possess that we do not? Patience. Endless patience and time. I’m starting over, folks. It’s back to basics and time to reconnect.
Much love to you all,
Kirsten A. Thorne, PhD/PHW
The Soul Bank: Stories, Research, Essays, (B)Logs 