I became interested in the supernatural at about age 7. (I was a bright kid.) My brother and I fooled with ouija boards, later we conducted seances, and once we even tried to conjure up the devil in an old convent graveyard at midnight. (Nothing happened.)
While our activities almost always produced discernable results, they lacked the material proof we really wanted to substantiate our experiences. Finally, as teenagers, we sought to procure that 'proof'.
We gathered several friends together in a quite room for the purpose of conducting a seance. At one end of the room we placed a tape recorder. The participants sat around a circular table, in the center on which burned a single candle. The chairs, the individuals were connected by a web of threads, to provide evidence of individual 'cheating'.
The lights were dimmed, the group held hands; we centered our attention on the flame of the candle, and willed the manifestation of a paranormal presence (ghost, to those less literate.)
At first, there was silence. I felt a cold breeze over my feet. The tension in the room increased enormously. We ended the seance, and our friends went home. (The thread remained intact.)
Though my brother and I were sorely disappointed by the lack of results, we decided we would listen to the tape, if for nothing else than formalities sake. What we heard was chilling.
A short while after everyone joined hands and settled down, there was a profound change in 'background noise'. I can best describe it as the sound of rushing water. Then, coming from some point in the room and going towards (and up to) the tape recorder, were what sounded like the footsteps of someone who was limping. When they reached the taperecorder, there came the sound of a bell ringing. The footseps receaded, the bell sounded again, the sound of 'rushing water' stopped, and, on the tape were our voices; the seance ended.
No one consiously experienced anything that was recorded on that tape. We were there, and whatever anyone else might say, we WERE THERE. It scared the hell out of us, and thirty years later, it still chills me.
Since then, I have never actively persued contacting spirits. I've had many experiences, though I sought proof for none. I am convinced beyond doubt that it is possible to summon or amass energy, and that energy may manifest in many forms. Most importantly, we may not even be consiously aware of that energy, it's nature, it's force. I liken it to playing with 'some' TNT. It may be a few molecules, it may be a ton; one may only learn how much when playtime is over. TNT does not make for a good toy.
Roughly 10 years ago, my best friend died. He told me that if it were at all possible, he would make every effort to contact me. Many strange coincidences have indeed occurred, but he told me that the way I would know for sure would be by recieving a pre-agreed upon phrase.
Would any of you have some constructive, sane suggestions? Thanks, Jackie