War and the Paranormal

Many years ago, a Vietnam veteran told me a fascinating story about an out-of-body experience he had during combat. He and some fellow soldiers were engaged in a firefight in the jungle when a grenade exploded nearby. Jack remembered rising up out of his body and watching as paramedics frantically tried to revive him, bandaged his wounds, placed him on a stretcher, and ran up to a helicopter to slide the stretcher inside. Then he calmly watched as the helicopter flew away with his body aboard. The next thing he recalled was waking up in a field hospital to learn that most of his comrades had died.

Read about George, a WWI veteran whose

mysterious death was predicted by an omen.

There are many paranormal stories related to war. Perhaps because soldiers experience such extreme emotions on the battlefield, a residue of their fear and exhilaration leaves an imprint on the surrounding area that doesn't readily dissipate.  I’ve read the stories of people who describe having seen ghosts from the Revolutionary War. And the hauntings on the Gettysburg battlefields are legend. 

One story in my upcoming book recounts a past-life episode that a man had as a doctor during the Civil War and how it shaped his career path in this life. Another tale recounts a paranormal event that occurred in Italy during World War I, as retold by the soldier's grand niece.

Clearly, in situations like war where death becomes a daily companion, paranormal activity can’t be far behind. Read more about it in Loitering at the Gate to Eternity: Memoirs of Psychic Bystander, late this summer at Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble. Available in hardcover, softcover, and electronic versions.

Animals and the Afterlife

If you've ever loved and lost a pet, there's good news. They're alive and well on the Other Side.

Several years ago, our family had a wonderful cat named Nala who was poisoned by tainted cat-food ingredients from China. The extent of our grief over her senseless suffering and death cannot be expressed in words.

A friend suggested something we'd never heard of before—that we talk to an animal psychic who specialized in helping grieving pet owners. Then she suggested another concept that surprised us even further. She said that we should ask the psychic to find out if our cat would be willing to reincarnate so we could take her back into our lives.

I remember reading in one book on psychic phenomena that pets often reincarnate with their masters through lifetimes. Our family had never considered this. So we called the animal psychic, who lives in California, and had a session. She not only described what our cat looked like (white with orange and black spots), how she died (kidney failure) and her personality, she also told us what to look for because Nala would be reincarnating soon to rejoin us with her brother who had predeceased her. This time, we were told, she would be a black cat and her brother would be either black or gray. We were assured that no one else would adopt her before we got to her.

We still missed Nala, but were intrigued by the possibility that she and her brother might be rejoining us. So, I began searching for the right kittens in animal shelters. I would call and ask if they had a female black cat with a black or gray brother. For several weeks, the answer everywhere was a puzzled "No." (We have plenty of cute kittens—why so specific on the colors?)

Finally, I called a shelter nearby that had a black female kitten with a gray brother. I jumped into the car and drove over with my younger daughter. Apparently, no one had wanted to adopt this kitten because she had an external hernia. Also, their mother was feral so she and her brother were not as friendly as the other kittens there. We signed the adoption papers, took our black kitten to a vet to have her hernia fixed and named our new family members Maya and Sebastian. They immediately seemed to know their way around our house and have settled in very nicely over the years.

Maya and Sebastian on their adoption day. Maya’s fur

blends with the background, but her wide eyes stand out.

Many psychics write about animals and the afterlife. Sylvia Browne says that animals immediately cross over to the other side after death—no life review is needed—and enjoy a predator-free and playful existence. George Anderson says that when people have traumatic deaths, animals are often sent to greet them as they cross over to make the transition a bit easier. So, it would seem pet therapy is employed on this and the Other Side!

If you enjoy reading about the paranormal, including a few stories about dearly departed pets, look for Loitering at the Gate to Eternity: Memoirs of a Psychic Bystander, coming to bookstores and Amazon.com late this summer.