Seeing Ghosts

It seems like everyone is seeing ghosts these days, at least on TV? Why are we suddenly so interested in the spirit world?

It seems like everyone is seeing ghosts these days. You can see them every week on Ghost Whisperer and several reality ghost-hunting shows. (I've even seen a version for kids!) And let's not forget the great-looking guys/road trip show Supernatural, in which our heroes encounter all number of otherworldly manifestations as they continue their quest for their mother's (demonic) killer.

Eye-candy factor aside, why does it seem like all things preternatural are appearing on the general public's radar right now?

Well, the first thing that comes to mind is that these stories are interesting. They allow us to learn about things that are new to us. Most of us, if we were completely honest, probably wouldn't want to have our own close encounter with a restless spirit, say. By watching a ghost hunting show, we can live vicariously through the participants without leaving our (hopefully) spirit-free homes.

Another reason that occurred to me is that man has a deep-seated need to believe that there is more to life than the physical plane we currently inhabit. We don't want to believe that our essence, our soul, if you will, dies at the moment of our physical death. We also want to believe that when we lose our loved ones, they are safe and well and just away for a time and that we will see them again. Certainly, the stories on Ghost Whisperer satisfy this need: once the spirit finishes a task or is able say goodby to loved ones, he or she goes into a place of love and light. The family is comforted in their grief and looking forward to a reunion in the future. Roll credits.

Things go in cycles: we didn't find what we were looking for in our lust for money and possessions that seemed to come to the forefront in recent years. The pendulum is now swinging the other way, and we are looking for comfort and reassurance on a spiritual level.

In this week's article, I am going to examine "Putting the Normal in Paranormal" and discuss whether what we consider to be "out there" is constant or ever-changing.