Pet spirits

Well, i do hope never to see: ". . . a foul thing, a great, black beast, shaped like a hound, yet larger than any hound that ever mortal eye has rested upon . . ." coming at me from out of the gloaming. But then, i'm not Hugo Baskerville, and i don't try to ride down captive maidens escaped in the nighttime.

As i doubt the existence of human specters, i rather doubt the existence of canid ghosts. Our memories do play tricks upon us, which might account for the reports of others.

So, are you "hounding" me now, Set? I think I'm with you on the memory thing, but I like to maintain a healthy suspension of disbelief these days, for many reasons.

In that misty realm between sleep and waking, i have often been brought to full consciousness by hearing my grandmother (who raised me) speak my name aloud--she has been dead these many years. I have never for a moment believed that "her ghost walks," but rather just accept the persistence of perception . . .

That misty realm is when one is most susceptible to the spirit world...you can rationalize, but do you know for sure? I've had a few weird experiences with this sort of thing, and it could very well go the route of science or mythology to explain it. However, I just feel that the jury is still out on either side.

We are the stuff that dreams are made on . . .

I can't help thinking about the respect that Native peoples give to the animals they hunt, to say thanks to the animal spirit released. Whether or not it is simple perspective or something more, it sure makes for a nice philosophy on how we treat the natural world. L.A. celebrities who dye their dogs pink just don't get it, IMO. Hmmm....is this too heady for 'Pets and Garden'? I hope not. Quantam mechanics has some support for the Buddhist (and others) theory that the world is indeed interconnected on a sub-molecular level. In a sense, your pet, your plant, everything around you is in essence, a part of you, albeit in a very slow state of flux. It just might be possible that we simply do not know how to communicate directly on that level, but we are learning by baby steps. That could explain apparitions and visitations from beyond, yes?

My apologies for using 'in a sense' and 'in essence' in the same sentence. <slaps wrist with nun ruler>

Sure, Boss, whatever floats yer boat . . .

In fact, no, i don't consider that a plausible explantion for the unsupported claims that folks make about spirits.

Wonder what those crazy wimmins in the CAT room will think when they find this.

Isn't an unsupported claim just a theory in training?

Rather than in training, i would say a theory which hasn't yet learned how to dress, act and speak in public so as to earn an undeserved credibility . . .

Hmm....I have to wait until the true wackos show up. Yer too centered and reasonable Boss. However, I am still interested in what others think, for entertainment purposes only.

If your paper carries it, check today's edition of Bizarro. If not, check bizarro.com in about two weeks when it gets posted there.

Hmmm - were I to believe in spirits I would see no reason to imagine they confined themselves to human form.

Isn't that a line from "willy wonka, and the chocolate factory?LOL

That misty state has a name, you know - it is called a hypnogogic state.

Spelling may be wrong, though.

Set's phrase is better, eh?

Cav--

Several years after her husband died, a great Aunt of mine was certain that his spirit had returned in the form of a crow flapping frantically outside her windows. This, in spite of the fact that as a devout Christian she believed in neither reincarnation nor animal spirits, and that, in life, Uncle Al had known how to use the door.

I think we have a great ability to interpret events to our own liking.

I know that certain deceased people and pets make regular appearences in my dreams, and I often imagine they are in other rooms, just out of sight. I attribute these sightings and feelings to imagination and my poor mind's resistance to the apparent finality of death, but others may draw different conclusions.

Well, it's possible that heaven exists in the minds of those that remember us.

Yep, I like Set's phrase. Is that from Willie Wonka? Well, give yer dog chocolate, and you'll be seeing his or her spirit soon, I tell ya.

Greyfan, I had a weird experience some years ago with a friend who asked me to channel his dead girlfriend, who killed herself for no apparent reason. He was completely obsessed. Well, we got drunk and pulled out a Ouija board, and apparently, whatever the heck it was I communicated to him, he believed it as truth. It is indeed interesting how the mind works under strange influences. He was fond of cats, and one thing I recall was mentioning that a stray he had been feeding was posessed by her spirit, and came to him because she wanted him to know that it wasn't his fault. At the time, I really thought I was channeling. In retrospect, I think I was just being intuitive, and telling him what he wanted to hear.