Doug Dillon's Blog, page 58
August 5, 2015
Synchronicity on St. Simon’s Is., GA?
For our anniversary in 2009, my wife Barb and I treated ourselves by spending a few days on St. Simon’s Island, Georgia. Beautiful place with a long history that connects with St. Augustine in our home state of Florida.
In our travels on that island, we visited what’s left of Fort Frederica, a crucial British outpost just before the Revolutionary War. The fort itself is very small but the surrounding area is huge because an entire town once existed there as well. When the British abandoned the fort, the town died. All that you can see of it today are the foundations of houses and businesses.
This photo shows the elegant hallway at the entrance to the solarium.
Our home base for all of our excursions was the gorgeous King and Prince Resort. It’s a very comfortable place right on the ocean and dates back to 1935.
Maybe it was our day of exploring that eerie Fort Frederica ghost town without anyone else around but something happened at the King and Prince to make us wonder.
After dinner that evening, we decided to check out the hotel’s solarium, a sort of sun room area used for events like small banquets.
It was just Barb and me. That whole area of the hotel seemed as abandoned as the town near Fort Frederica. Totally quiet except for our conversation.
We spent some time looking at the furnishings and decor before finally plopping ourselves down in two Wingback chairs.
Shown here is the actual solarium entrance, looking back into the hallway
After a while, we both sell silent, lost in our own thoughts. It’s at that point I had a distinct sensation Barb and I weren’t alone. I kept looking around to make sense out of what I was feeling, but couldn’t. Seconds later, Barb broke the silence and told me she was having similar thoughts.
Realizing we were both on the same track, we decided to just sit silently for a while and tune in to whatever seemed to be happening near or around us. This we did for about five minutes and then shared whatever sensations, thoughts or feelings bubbled up in the quiet.
The result was fascinating. I would say a few words, then Barb, and then me again–back and forth as if we were both describing the exact same scene. When we got done speaking, we just looked at each other in wonder.
What we had jointly described were the sights and sounds of a party going on in the solarium. It was as if people were walking around–people of a bygone era. There was music, laughter, food and drink being served and some people were playing games. Glasses, dishes and utensils clinked. Amazing. It gave us chills.
No we didn’t actually see or hear those things. It was more like we were tuning into a television program but a reality show in which we were somehow distant participants.
Our conclusion? We as human beings are connected to all that is, has been and will be. Sometimes, especially in the stillness and quiet of the moment, we are privileged to perceive some of those connections.That night we were simply thankful to have received such a gift. A further explanation simply wasn’t needed.
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you also might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository
August 4, 2015
Can the Dead Visit Us in Our Dreams?
Most likely, you’ve clicked on this article because you’re searching for a deeper understanding of life. 
Well, you’ve found a friend in that worthy effort and it is my pleasure to share some of my discoveries with you.
You see, I’m a Florida writer, educator, meditator, grandfather and investigator probing into the nature of reality. Through my years of careful observation, intensive research, and startling personal experiences, I’ve come to some partial conclusions about the nature of our existence and what lies beyond life as we know it.
In that light, I offer you access to my extensive blog postings about such things through this website. You can either use the categories I’ve set up or you can insert your own and see what pops up. For a few examples of such posts, see the active links at the end of this article.
Then again, if you would like to investigate some of the books I’ve written, you’ll find that information below.
But no matter what, I wish you well on your journey of exploration. May you find what you’re looking for and how very much I hope you share what you uncover with others, including me.
We’re all in this together and we very much need each other’s help. You may contact me through the link to this posting or you can use the contact form on the website. I would love to hear from you.
Now as to my books that I think you might find of value. If you’re interested, you can order any of them from your local bookstore and all the major online book outlets.
Or, you can ask your local library to make copies available if they don’t already have them in the stacks.
Every library has some sort of procedure for patrons to make book purchase suggestions and they often follow through with those ideas just like the Orlando Public Library does near where I live (pictured here).
First, let me first show you my nonfiction books:
Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Experiences (Published as a paperback, hardback and Kindle eBook)
I’ve always been fascinated by Carl Jung and his theory of synchronicity.
His idea that there are no true coincidences, and all things are linked, increasingly fits with what I’ve experienced in recent years to an astounding degree.
And when I investigated Jung’s life, I also found how many truly strange events occurred in his life. Here was a famous psychiatrist whose paranormal experiences mirrored so much of what I was coming to understand that I had to pull it all together in book form.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
An Explosion of Being: An American Family’s Journey into the Psychic (Published as a Kindle eBook and paperback)
The title almost tells it all. This is a true life adventure that extended to my entire family. Many years ago, right after my father died, strange things began happening.
Those events led to my lifelong pursuit of things paranormal and to the writing of this book with my wife, Barbara.
An imprint of Prentice Hall published the book across the world and Barb and I launched into an eye-opening round of radio and TV presentations.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
Now for my fiction work:
The St. Augustine Trilogy
Much of my educational career involved teenagers. And after taking early retirement, I decided to combine my experience with young people, my love for history and my paranormal understandings in a book series for young adults. The stories are action packed, with the premise being: “You Create Your Own Reality.”
This series takes place in present day St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest and most haunted city in the United States. And surprisingly, what I have found is that even older adults like what I’ve written despite it originally being designed for teens.
Below you can see larger versions of the book covers and a brief description of each plot.
Sliding Beneath the Surface {Book I}. Published as a Kindle eBook and paperback.
In America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida, teenager Jeff Golden is in trouble. Horrible dreams won’t let him sleep, and he is up to his eyeballs in terrifying, paranormal experiences.
Finally, Jeff turns to his girlfriend Carla, and Lobo, the mysterious Native American shaman, for help. But what he discovers is a lot more than he bargained for.
A ghostly presence linked to a local historic cemetery is not only threatening Jeff’s sanity but his life as well. And before he knows what’s happening, Jeff finds both himself and Carla pulled into one of the nastiest and bloody events in Florida history. It is a place from which they may never escape.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
Stepping Off a Cliff {Book II}. Published as a Kindle eBook and paperback.
An otherworldly, evil and dangerous force infests America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida. Everyone living there, or visiting, is at risk in ways too horrible to imagine.
Standing between this invader and the people of St. Augustine are teenagers Jeff and Carla, the mysterious Native American shaman, Lobo, and Lyle, the homeless guy.
In their quest to save themselves and all the inhabitants of this ancient Florida city, Jeff and Carla uncover lost parts of St. Augustine history, push past the limits of space and time, and come face-to-face with what they come to realize are the true walking dead.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
Targeting Orion’s Children {Book III}. Publication due in late 2016.
In this, the final book of The St. Augustine Trilogy, the team of Jeff Golden, Carla Rodriguez, old Lobo, the Native American shaman and Lyle, the homeless guy, gather once again to join forces.
This time, though, the two teens face a paranormal presence that defies full human understanding and becomes a threat far beyond the oldest city in America where they live.
Overwhelmed by the immense responsibility they hold in their hands, Jeff and Carla make a jaw-dropping discovery that leads them in directions they could never before have imagined.
OK, and finally, as promised, here are the links to those blog post samples:
Meditation, Mindfulness and Premonitions
Haunted Lighthouse in St. Augustine, Florida
Animals and Synchronicity
Mom, fussing at me for taking her picture before she was ready
I think paranormal events sometimes occur when we think of people who are no longer in this life. Or, maybe it happens when they think of us. Anyway, when such a thing occurs, it immediately connects me with the person and that is the beauty of it. The exact reasons why this type of thing comes about isn’t as important as the fact that, for me, it accomplishes something very important on an emotional and spiritual level.
One day as I was writing at my desk, I took a stretch break and looked through the window on the other side of my computer. That always helps to refresh me since we have a large backyard full of trees and lush tropical growth. In scanning my domain, I glanced at one of the pieces of my mom’s stained glass art we had saved after her death. It mirrors our backyard since we have some flowers and the occasional hummingbird.
Mom had that same piece up in her kitchen window and I smiled with the memory of how much she enjoyed her house over in Indialantic. As soon as that thought flashed through my mind, a hummingbird came out of nowhere and hovered just inches from the window. Not only that, the position of its hovering was directly behind the stained glass hummingbird. The real creature was perfectly framed by the wire oval.
The little bird, with wings blurred in stationery flight, moved his head back and forth as if inspecting the interior of my home office. That lasted for about 10 seconds and then he was gone. The event couldn’t have been scripted more perfectly.
Thanks Mom.
NOTE: For a truly fascinating update on this event, click here.
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you also might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository
August 3, 2015
Paranormal Coincidences in Social Media
I write a lot about how coincidences often show the true paranormal nature of the world in which we live. These events, especially when there are a serious of them related to each other, can be a bit startling. Even so, over the years I’ve gotten fairly used to them. Once in a while, though, something will happen that really makes my jaw drop in wonder. That’s what happened to me just a few minutes ago.
Let me back up here. A few days ago, I published a short article on my blog titled, “Paranormal Coincidences: The Hummingbird and Stained Glass”. It was all about a set of simultaneous events involving a hummingbird right outside the window of my home office. Today, I decided to post that piece on Facebook because it was a warm, touching story related to my deceased mother. If you want to read that article, I’ve provided a link at the bottom of all this text. The picture on the left, however, is one of those I used in the article.
Now back to a few minutes ago. Right after dinner, I checked my emails and noticed I had received a Google Alert. I have them set up so that Google scours the Internet for me on all kinds of subjects including, Doug Dillon. Tonight, the Google email said, “Join Doug Dillon on Facebook.”
Bridge of Lions Photo courtesy of Greg Dillon-Photography by Greg
Figuring it must be the hummingbird posting I did today, I clicked on it. Sure enough, the hummingbird picture came up. The thing is, it wasn’t my hummingbird. The color of the flowers was wrong. In fact, this picture filled a good chunk of the screen with a smaller version of itself where my Facebook profile photo usually sits. For a few seconds, I was really disoriented because my cover photo is actually a nighttime picture of the Bridge of Lions in St. Augustine. Even so, it still said, “Doug Dillon.”
Finally, I tore my eyes away from the pictures and looked at the profile. That’s when I discovered I was looking at a description of another Doug Dillon. That’s what I said, another DOUG DILLON. Not only that, but this other Doug Dillon and I have these items in common:
We both are retired
We both are retired from a school system
We are both retired from a school system in the state of Florida
We both like history
We both went to public universities in the state of Florida
See why I really jumped up and took notice? As I look at the other Doug Dillon’s Facebook timeline, I see this entire event as a giant cosmic exclamation point-one I will now have to insert into my original posting on the hummingbird and stained glass.
If you would like to see the other Doug Dillon’s Facebook timeline, click here. I don’t know how long he will keep that hummingbird picture up, but I hope he keeps it there long enough for you to take a look at it. Oh. I immediately sent Doug # 2 a Friend Request. I think this event will blow his socks off. It will be interesting to talk to him.
If you would like to see that previous posting, click here.
UPDATE: The other Doug Dillon responded to me on Facebook where we are now friends. He read this article and found it pretty startling. This was especially true since he had some things to add to the string of coincidences listed above and here they are:
Like me, he was a district level school administrator
Through his job back in those days, he visited Orange County Public School’s district office in Orlando where I worked. During that day, he happened to walk by MY DESK. He noticed my nameplate and stopped short. When he asked if I was around., someone told him I was away at a conference. So, Doug and I think that for whatever reason, we were destined to make contact. The thing is, it sure did take a long time. I would like to meet him one of these days.
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you also might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository
Spiritualism & Paranormal Coincidences
In our investigations into the paranormal, my wife Barbara and have come to the conclusion that no events are truly coincidental. Having that belief is one thing but seeing it demonstrated in a highly dramatic way tends to really grab your attention. This is the recent story about such a happening.
The book Barb and I wrote about the paranormal was originally published by an imprint of Prentice Hall back in 1984. When we brought An Explosion of Being back to life through Old St. Augustine Publications in the fall of 2011, I began to wonder about the people who read that first edition. Did the book have any lasting effect on them? Did anyone actually keep a copy or did they just give it away? Questions like that.
Two days later, the phone rang. The caller ID said, “Cassadaga Camp.” Cassadaga? Barb and I hadn’t had any actual connection with that Spiritualist town just north of us since we went there for a psychic reading in 1979. In our book, we wrote about our visit to Cassadaga and the medium, Mae Graves Ward, but I couldn’t see how this phone call could relate to that in any way. Much to my amazement, I soon discovered how wrong I was.
It turned out that the caller, was Selene Green, the manager for the Cassadaga Camp Bookstore and Information Center. This is what she said: “You probably don’t remember me but I was the manager of the B. Dalton’s bookstore in Gainesville, Florida when you and your wife did a book signing there back in 1985.” She went on to say that she still had her copy of our book we signed for her at the time and she believed that it led her to her present position in Cassadaga.
Spirit Pond in Cassadaga, FL. Photo by Marla Chirnside
To say I was astounded doesn’t begin to explain how I felt. Before I had time to recover, Selene put another woman on the phone. “Hi Doug, I’m Marla Chirnside and I hired your wife to work in the Seminole County Chamber of Commerce back in 1985.”
My phone connection with Cassadaga was getting weirder by the moment. Marla’s name rang a bell in my startled brain and Barb had indeed worked at the Seminole County Chamber.
Left-Marla Chirnside, Right-Selene Green
“I know you won’t believe this,” Marla went on to say, “but I’m living in Mae Graves Ward’s house here in Cassadaga, the medium you and Barb visited. I’m also a healer and serve on the Board of Trustees for the Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp.”
What a double-barelled surprise! Talk about getting your questions answered and making a point about there being no coincidences! A few weeks after that phone conversation, Barb and I went to Cassadaga and had dinner with both Selene and Marla. We had a wonderful time catching up on the intervening years, talking about what brought us all together again, and discussing the paranormal.
Enough said about that experience. I think it speaks for itself. If you want to know more about Cassadaga, see my two previous posts, one of which is a photo gallery. My next post will highlight the Cassadaga Bookstore and Information Center.
For more information on Cassadaga, click on any of the following links:
Cassadaga, A Spiritualist Community
Cassadaga Bookstore and Information Center
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you also might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository
August 2, 2015
Synchronicity Examples
Fascinating new book by paranormal author and investigator, Doug Dillon, brings to life Carl Jung’s personal supernatural experiences. Backed up synchronistic events and strange happenings in the lives of a large variety of other very reliable people.
Praise for Carl Jung, Hauntings, Paranormal Coincidences:
“This book is a part of all of us. The journey that we are all taking is inherently connected to those stories told in this book, written with so much joy, curiosity, and intelligence . . .”
Steven Ballou,
Psychotherapist and Adjunct Faculty/Psychology, Southern New Hampshire University
“Wow! As an experienced and seasoned paranormal investigator (24 years), I really loved this book!”
Jill Borter,
Operations Manager and Electronic Voice Phenomena Analyst, Orlando Paranormal Investigations
“Doug Dillon’s work helps one better appreciate the magnificence of all that surrounds and defines our existence.”
Jim Caccavo,
former NEWSWEEK, Vietnam war correspondent/photographer
“What a journey. What a litany of experiences. If you like ‘the Paranormal’, you’ll love Carl Jung, Hauntings and Paranormal Coincidences.”
Chuck Dowling,
author of The Hammer of God Series, the Story of Arthur
“I could hardly put this book down. For anyone who has questions about what happens when we pass from the living world, I recommend this book.”
Mary Jo Fister,
Lead Investigator and Case Manager, Offthetrails Paranormal Investigations
“This book illustrates the relationship of spirituality in everyday life with a curiosity about things we may experience and never understand.”
Kitty Mendoza,
Psychotherapist in private practice, Longwood, Florida
“Each vignette is crafted so well that I couldn’t stop reading.”
Diane Ross,
Hypnotist and author of Meditations for Miracles
If you are interested in reading this book, you can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English-speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, Kobo (Canada)
This book is based upon a series of very popular blog posts Doug did on Carl Jung’s paranormal adventures. See links to all postings on the following lead article titled, Carl Jung Part 1: Paranormal, Coincidences and Synchronicity.
July 31, 2015
Can the Dead Actually Communicate with the Living?
Most likely, you’ve clicked on this article because you’re searching for a deeper understanding of life. Well, you’ve found a friend in that worthy effort and it is my pleasure to share some of my discoveries with you.
You see, I’m a Florida writer, educator, meditator, grandfather and investigator probing into the nature of reality. Through my years of careful observation, intensive research, and startling personal experiences, I’ve come to some partial conclusions about the nature of our existence and what lies beyond life as we know it.
In that light, I offer you access to my extensive blog postings about such things through this website. You can either use the categories I’ve set up or you can insert your own and see what pops up. For a few examples of such posts, see the active links at the end of this article.
Then again, if you would like to investigate some of the books I’ve written, you’ll find that information below.
But no matter what, I wish you well on your journey of exploration. May you find what you’re looking for and how very much I hope you share what you uncover with others, including me.
We’re all in this together and we very much need each other’s help. You may contact me through the link to this posting or you can use the contact form on the website. I would love to hear from you.
Now as to my books that I think you might find of value. If you’re interested, you can order any of them from your local bookstore and all the major online book outlets.
Or, you can ask your local library to make copies available if they don’t already have them in the stacks.
Every library has some sort of procedure for patrons to make book purchase suggestions and they often follow through with those ideas just like the Orlando Public Library does near where I live (pictured here).
First, let me first show you my nonfiction books:
Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Experiences (Published as a paperback, hardback and Kindle eBook)
I’ve always been fascinated by Carl Jung and his theory of synchronicity.
His idea that there are no true coincidences, and all things are linked, increasingly fits with what I’ve experienced in recent years to an astounding degree.
And when I investigated Jung’s life, I also found how many truly strange events occurred in his life. Here was a famous psychiatrist whose paranormal experiences mirrored so much of what I was coming to understand that I had to pull it all together in book form.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
An Explosion of Being: An American Family’s Journey into the Psychic (Published as a Kindle eBook and paperback)
The title almost tells it all. This is a true life adventure that extended to my entire family. Many years ago, right after my father died, strange things began happening.
Those events led to my lifelong pursuit of things paranormal and to the writing of this book with my wife, Barbara.
An imprint of Prentice Hall published the book across the world and Barb and I launched into an eye-opening round of radio and TV presentations.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
Now for my fiction work:
The St. Augustine Trilogy
Much of my educational career involved teenagers. And after taking early retirement, I decided to combine my experience with young people, my love for history and my paranormal understandings in a book series for young adults. The stories are action packed, with the premise being: “You Create Your Own Reality.”
This series takes place in present day St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest and most haunted city in the United States. And surprisingly, what I have found is that even older adults like what I’ve written despite it originally being designed for teens.
Below you can see larger versions of the book covers and a brief description of each plot.
Sliding Beneath the Surface {Book I}. Published as a Kindle eBook and paperback.
In America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida, teenager Jeff Golden is in trouble. Horrible dreams won’t let him sleep, and he is up to his eyeballs in terrifying, paranormal experiences.
Finally, Jeff turns to his girlfriend Carla, and Lobo, the mysterious Native American shaman, for help. But what he discovers is a lot more than he bargained for.
A ghostly presence linked to a local historic cemetery is not only threatening Jeff’s sanity but his life as well. And before he knows what’s happening, Jeff finds both himself and Carla pulled into one of the nastiest and bloody events in Florida history. It is a place from which they may never escape.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
Stepping Off a Cliff {Book II}. Published as a Kindle eBook and paperback.
An otherworldly, evil and dangerous force infests America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida. Everyone living there, or visiting, is at risk in ways too horrible to imagine.
Standing between this invader and the people of St. Augustine are teenagers Jeff and Carla, the mysterious Native American shaman, Lobo, and Lyle, the homeless guy.
In their quest to save themselves and all the inhabitants of this ancient Florida city, Jeff and Carla uncover lost parts of St. Augustine history, push past the limits of space and time, and come face-to-face with what they come to realize are the true walking dead.
Amazon.com Barnes and Noble.com Books-A-Million.com
Targeting Orion’s Children {Book III}. Publication due in late 2016.
In this, the final book of The St. Augustine Trilogy, the team of Jeff Golden, Carla Rodriguez, old Lobo, the Native American shaman and Lyle, the homeless guy, gather once again to join forces.
This time, though, the two teens face a paranormal presence that defies full human understanding and becomes a threat far beyond the oldest city in America where they live.
Overwhelmed by the immense responsibility they hold in their hands, Jeff and Carla make a jaw-dropping discovery that leads them in directions they could never before have imagined.
OK, and finally, as promised, here are the links to those blog post samples:
Meditation, Mindfulness and Premonitions
Haunted Lighthouse in St. Augustine, Florida
July 30, 2015
Do Thoughts Connect with the Afterlife?
Mom, fussing at me for taking her picture before she was ready
I think paranormal events sometimes occur when we think of people who are no longer in this life. Or, maybe it happens when they think of us. Anyway, when such a thing occurs, it immediately connects me with the person and that is the beauty of it. The exact reasons why this type of thing comes about isn’t as important as the fact that, for me, it accomplishes something very important on an emotional and spiritual level.
One day as I was writing at my desk, I took a stretch break and looked through the window on the other side of my computer. That always helps to refresh me since we have a large backyard full of trees and lush tropical growth. In scanning my domain, I glanced at one of the pieces of my mom’s stained glass art we had saved after her death. It mirrors our backyard since we have some flowers and the occasional hummingbird.
Mom had that same piece up in her kitchen window and I smiled with the memory of how much she enjoyed her house over in Indialantic. As soon as that thought flashed through my mind, a hummingbird came out of nowhere and hovered just inches from the window. Not only that, the position of its hovering was directly behind the stained glass hummingbird. The real creature was perfectly framed by the wire oval.
The little bird, with wings blurred in stationery flight, moved his head back and forth as if inspecting the interior of my home office. That lasted for about 10 seconds and then he was gone. The event couldn’t have been scripted more perfectly.
Thanks Mom.
NOTE: For a truly fascinating update on this event, click here.
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you also might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository
July 29, 2015
Can Dreams Come True?
This paranormal event is almost as difficult for me to share as it was when I wrote about it in, An Explosion of Being. When my wife Barbara and I put that book together many years ago, we decided to include what you are about to read as a cautionary tale. I’m posting this experience for the same reason. The chapter from which it is taken is told from Barb’s perspective as you will see but she quickly shifts to me telling my own tale:
From intriguing to unsettling is a big step, but this terrifying dream of Doug’s and its conclusion in the physical world showed how quickly that transition can occur: “Dream after dream shot their ways past me in rapid fire succession. They made a blizzard of random movements, people, objects and colors.
“Tossing and turning, I was physically and psychologically restless. Everything moved too quickly and nothing was understandable, until the motion slowed to a comprehensible focus on a small child. It seemed as if the child was a little girl, but I wasn’t certain because she, or he, was running so fast.
“In a moment, the child’s desperation was all too clear. Someone was in pursuit, and the child was fleeing in panic. The scenes then changed too rapidly to follow, until, once more, the focus was on the child, but this time he, or she, was sitting in a blue pickup truck. Again, the child tried to escape, but as the door opened, a slashing knife seemed to cut completely through the small body.
“Before I had time to react, the child was staggering through the woods, finally stopping just in front of me, critically wounded. Crouching in pain, the child looked at me, turning my growing revulsion into an agonizing desire to help. Reaching down, I gathered the youngster in my arms and held it close. In absolute horror, I realized that I was literally holding the child together.”
“Lurching awake, I found myself trembling and in a cold sweat. Nicole must have sensed something. She had arisen, entered our room and was just standing by the bed, looking at me in the darkness. I reached out and hugged her, dissipating some of the dream’s terror.
“The next day, I began a scheduled business trip along Florida’s East Coast. On the way towards Jacksonville, a radio report, describing a child’s abduction in south Florida seemed like just another bit of the world’s negativity, so I paid little attention.
“After finally arriving at my destination and settling into the motel south of town, I went in search of a restaurant for dinner. But again, the radio blared news of that abduction. On it went, with the final chilling news that part of the child’s body had just been discovered by search teams. My hands began to shake. Pictures from the horrifying dream the night before flooded my mind.
“Instantly, I knew that the dream action of holding a child together was symbolically valid. Somehow, a part of me had spiritually stumbled into that event to help the child’s consciousness repair the damage done through the pain and fear of that gruesome killing.
“Supper that night didn’t settle very well. I left most of it still sitting on the plate and returned to the motel. Using the noise of television and the need to prepare for my meeting the next day, I was able to push thoughts of my dream and the child into the background. Sleep came much later, but only after wrestling with a piercing sadness and a raging anger at the injustice of physical life. I could still feel that trembling youngster in my arms.
“Incredibly, within the next couple of days, my original travel plans put me on a road passing the exact spot where the TV news reported authorities had found the abducted child’s dismembered remains. That “coincidence really jarred me.Expanded awareness can be a double-edged sword.”
As Doug found out, this paranormal stuff can indeed cut two ways. On the one hand, it can clear a path for beautiful and satisfying perceptions, but on the other hand, it can reveal information that I suspect we might otherwise prefer to hide from our conscious mind. So called “psychic phenomena,” then, are perhaps just tiny bursts of recognition, both positive and negative, reminding us of the truer reality from which our physical existence springs.
One final note. The news event I talk about during this experience was national news for a very long time. Even so, I didn’t and still don’t feel comfortable mentioning the names of the people involved. That experience was so real to me at back then, it brought tears to my eyes when I told Barb about it. Still does.
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you also might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Austral
Do Coincidences Foretell the Future?
Should you pay attention when a coincidence, or coincidences, seems to point to a possible danger? And if you pay attention, what action(s) should you take, if any, to avert that danger?
My wife Barb and I are serious believers in the idea that everything in existence is connected and also linked to unseen worlds, dimensions, universes, etc., etc. This boils down to the understanding that no event is fully random even though we may not understand how this comes about. For us, it’s just something we accept as a demonstration of such connectivity and we don’t have to prove causation to ourselves or anybody else. Nor do we question why something happened very much. Once in a great while, however, we are forced to look more closely.
Such a time came a couple of years ago when we got a letter from our electrician warning all his customers about the possibility of fire if they had a particular circuit breaker box made in the 1970’s.
Since our house was built in 1976, we paid close attention.
Sure enough, we were the proud owners of one of the breaker boxes in question. That kind of shook me up because during the previous week I had two experiences with electrical fires: one at my chiropractor’s office and one in a nursing home where I visit Hospice patients. Those fires were small and did little damage but the fact that they both happened with me present now made me sit up and take notice. Besides, the stink of burning wires from each fire was still fresh in my memory and the warning letter seemed to glare at me from its place on my desk.
When I called the electrician, he said that during all those years since the ’70s, the company did make some faulty breakers but all-in-all, not too many fires occurred, and there had not been a general recall. His assessment was that a slight danger did exist but probably not much to worry about. He told me he felt obligated to send out the notice he himself had received but since a new box would cost right around $1,000, it was highly questionable whether the minimal danger warranted such a high expense.
I liked what he had to say because I sure didn’t want to shell out that kind of money if I could help it. Still, I went on the Internet to research the situation myself. I came up with a mixed bag of results. The search verified much of what my electrician told me but I also read reports by other electricians who said the breaker boxes in question were crap, they wouldn’t have them in their homes and and they wouldn’t install one. Not so good but I still didn’t want to pay $1,000 if I could help it.
Just as I had that thought about not paying the money, the power in the entire house flickered on and off. Woops. A power shift when I’m researching electrical problems and almost deciding to not get a new breaker box? Uh, that was a little too coincidental for comfort. As a result, I did another Google search and came up with a newsletter published by a civic association for the the Village of Westover. Location? Very near Harrisburg, PA.
The entire front page was about my breaker box and how many of the homes in the community were originally constructed in the 1970’s using identical equipment. Evidently, enough fires had begun because of those boxes that quite a few families in the Village of Westover purchased new equipment. One woman talked about how fire started in her home built in 1976–the same year mine was constructed.
After reading that woman’s story, I happened to glance at the list of officers for the civic association. The last name for the immediate past president? Dillon, my last name. Not an overly common name. Yes, I did a double-take on that one. Click here to see that newsletter.
In discussing this all with Barb, we decided there were just too many linkages to ignore. As much as we hated to do it, we reluctantly agreed to get a new breaker box installed. It didn’t happen right away. I think it was a combination of my not wanting to part with all that money and just being overly busy.
A couple of weeks later while doing my usual walk around the neighborhood for exercise, I passed what was left of a house just up the street from us. For whatever reason, I had forgotten the thing burned up a year or two before. Since no repairs were made for so long, I guess I just accepted its looks as normal until that moment when the word fire suddenly sprang to mind. My neighborhood. 1970’s. Oh my God!
After she arrived home from work that evening, I reminded Barb about the burned out house near us and my new reaction to it. Like me, she had put it out of her mind but she immediately got on the Internet. After an extensive search, she found our city’s report giving details about the house fire in question. In the document she read, it cited the cause as faulty circuit breakers. Within a week, we had a new breaker panel, the one pictured above. Sometime you just gotta stop fighting the problem and go with the flow.
Update: May 23, 2012
A couple of months after having the new breaker box installed, our clothes dryer stopped working. So naturally, I called in repair guy. Turns out he had nothing to repair. He said I must have a faulty circuit breaker. What? No way. Sure enough, he had me feel it and damn if the thing wasn’t warm–a sure indication that a problem existed.
I immediately got the electrician back who installed our brand new breaker panel worth $1000. “Yup,” he said, “that’s weird. Shouldn’t happen.” He aslso said he didn’t think it really put us in any danger but he replaced the breaker for no charge.
SO – what does this say about interpreting a series of coincidences and acting on them? All the indicators pointed to danger so we acted, right? But what if our interpretation was wrong? If there was indeed a message in all those coincidental events, it is conceivable this was it: By All Means, Do Not Buy A New Breaker Panel. It will contain a Faulty Breaker and This Will Put You in Danger.
I bring this up to remind myself and everyone else how difficult it is to tease specific meaning out of coincidental events. This is one area where humanity has tripped itself up over the eons by assigning way too much meaning through the use of seers, oracles and psychics. If the Multiple Universes Theory of quantum physics is correct, perhaps the strong indicators we see in a series of coincidental events may have a probable meaning but it may have stronger or weaker shades of probability according to the universe in which you live. A huge caution sign.
Am I now second guessing our decision to install a new breaker box? I did for a few seconds but as I weighed the two interpretations, I realized I would do the same thing again. Choices. It’s all about choices but based upon as much cool analysis as possible.
If you are truly interested in all kinds of strange phenomena, you might be like to take a look at my book, Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences. You can find it in most online bookstores. Listed below, however, are direct book links to some of the larger retail outlets in the English speaking world:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository
