Contacts from the World Beyond

When our loved ones pass from the physical world, one of the hardest things we struggle with is the fear that we’ll never see these beloved beings again, that they’re lost to us forever. Nothing could be further from the truth. Thousands of serious, scientific studies and personal testimonies affirm that even though the people we love have shucked off their mortal bodies, they still live on in the nonphysical realms––and they continue to love us, watch over us, and attempt to communicate with us.

Scientific research has shown that approximately half of all people whose spouses have undergone physical death experience some form of “contact” from their departed loved ones. (See my post “Communicating with Spirits” for more.) Often this happens within a few weeks or months after the spouse’s departure from the material world. Those left on earth may “sense” the presence of a loved one who is no longer physical, feel that person’s touch, smell his/her scent, hear his/her voice, or even see an image of the person.

According to a course titled Love Knows No Death (available from The Forever Family Foundation www.foreverfamilyfoundation.org), contacts of this type and/or communication with a loved one through a medium often result in a lessening of grief for those left behind. One study conducted at the Windbridge Institute in Tucson, AZ in 2010, found that bereaved individuals felt such communication was more effective in easing their grief than counseling with mental health professionals.

Some Personal Contacts from the Spirit Realm

In the summer of 2013, three girlfriends and I stayed at the home of a neighbor I’d known for many years, a woman who’d passed peacefully at the age of 101. Only one of my friends believed in life after physical death. During their visit, however, each of them experienced the presence of the elderly lady who’d lived in that house. One saw her ghostly form walk through her bedroom. Another heard the deceased’s footsteps approach her bedside and sensed the woman leaning over her. The third felt my departed neighbor sit on her bed and push her shoulder repeatedly, while other “visitors” in the room chatted and laughed. That summer, I sometimes heard my old neighbor and friend, now in spirit form, call my name and I regularly heard her footsteps in the upstairs rooms when no one else was at home. Even a workman doing repairs on the house claimed to have seen the former resident.

Since my beloved partner, Ron Conroy, left his physical body in April 2013, I’ve frequently experienced his presence in my life. He sings to me, points out things he thinks I should pay attention to, strokes and kisses my head (as he often did while in the physical world), presents me with meaningful visions, and shows up in my dreams. When I drove cross-country, he guided and protected me, and he has made himself known in countless other ways. Once, during a session with Reiki master Anne Schneider, he spoke to me through Anne, directing her to tell me he was here, now. Another time, I picked up a notepad and an old photo of Ron that I’d never seen before slipped out from between the pages. On yet another occasion, I pressed a button on my cell phone intending to listen to some Celtic music and heard instead a five-year-old old phone message from him. Sometimes he fiddles with my computer or makes lights blink. Your own loved ones may choose to communicate with you in similar ways, or in ways unique to you and them.

The most amazing experience of contact for me occurred on March 17, 2014. I was sitting outside on my back porch when suddenly I saw a white-haired man wearing only black shorts standing in a clearing near the road beside my lower property. I hadn’t seen him approach on either the road or through the neighboring properties––he had simply “materialized.” He was looking directly up at me, and I felt a jolt in my heart center, wondering if he might come up the hill toward me. Then he turned and walked about 100 feet down the road.

Just as I’d decided it was a neighbor taking a walk, he turned and started climbing the hill in my direction. I watched for a few moments, until he vanished––in the middle of an open field. For half an hour I watched but he didn’t reappear. A neighbor passed by on the road, walking his dog, but neither he nor the dog registered anything. I realized it was Ron, wearing what he’d had on the evening of his stroke. I sensed him saying he was glad I’d seen him because it took a lot of energy to appear so clear and solid for so long. Since then, I’ve seen him twice more, but neither time for such an extended period.

Techniques for Contacting Your Loved Ones

In the 1990s, psychiatrist Raymond Moody developed a technique to help bereaved people connect with beings who’ve left the physical world. These individuals sat in a comfortable chair, in a quiet darkened room Moody dubbed the psychomanteum after a place the ancient Greeks visited to make contact with the dead. The people seeking contact gazed calmly into a mirror positioned slightly above their heads for a period of time. To the researchers’ surprise, many of the bereaved reported experiencing some sort of contact with their departed loved ones, ranging from touches, smells, and voices, to fully formed images.

Even if you don’t have access to a psychomanteum, you may still be able to communicate with your loved ones who are now in spirit form. Although many people report unanticipated, spontaneous contact from nonphysical beings, you’re more likely to hear from your loved ones on the Other Side if you keep an open mind and believe such contact is possible.

• ·      If you know how to meditate, ask your loved one to make contact with you during meditation (NOTE: It may take more than one attempt before you achieve successful contact).
• ·      Dreams often provide a way to connect with nonphysical beings. Before going to sleep, ask your departed loved one(s) to communicate with you in the dream world. Keep a log of your dreams to gain understanding into their significant themes and symbols.
• ·      Pay attention to so-called “coincidences.” Do you see, sense, or otherwise experience events (large or small) that remind you of your departed loved one, or that seem to convey a message to you? Does a particular symbol evoke a meaningful thought or emotion whenever it appears? Notice your thoughts and impressions, as well as images, sensations, or experiences that accompany them. For me, that’s often music, but for you it could be the appearance of an animal, a scent, a word, or something else you relate to.