Terry Lloyd's Blog, page 51

Christmas.

Once again the time has come in the year where happiness and good cheer is celebrated in the name of Christmas. It may be me but the time between each Christmas seems to be getting shorter in comparison to when I was a little boy. The time dragged by when I was little and it seemed like an age before that joyful time when I could unwrap my presents. It never occurred to me that like Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland at the Mad Hatter's tea party where every day is an un birthday, the sentiment of Christmas was something that did not have to be commemorated according to the one date. The good will of Christmas should be celebrated on all the un-Christmas days throughout the year. It is remarkable how during a World War English and German soldiers laid down their arms to play football and exchange small gifts for one day and then hours on from this compassionate intervention continue with the carnage of war.

In a strange twist of facts the present royal family have a German history and Queen Victoria's husband Prince Albert is credited with introducing the Christmas tree to the UK.

In the second world War Germany was controlled by what could be described today as a radicalised organisation called the Nazi party lead by Hitler. He united Germany by appealing to
their self worth and national pride. He then chose a common enemy for all Germany's troubles. He attacked them and demanded their segregation and confinement. The rest is history.

All nations and religions have extreme elements that do not represent the views of the majority. Mature politicians know this but some aspiring politicians will point the finger at a supposed common enemy in order to gain political power. It would be sad if the public can not see the cheap publicity stunt being employed in the USA now.

It is strange and an ironic fact that one of the most dangerous things to do is advocate peace and non violence and a good example of this is Gandhi, Martin Luther King, George Washington and Jesus. Of course there have been many more.

The Christmas we know today is a representation of part commercialisation, part religion and part belief, but at the heart of all of these ideas is the message of peace on Earth and good will to all men. A message that I think we all have at heart and something that should bring people together.

Happy Christmas to you all.

Logic.

In my early days I loved the idea of owning a car but at that time I did not have the resources to buy one. It happened that I saw in the street a parked three wheeler which looked rather sporty. On investigation I found I could just afford to buy one. There was a most remarkable feature that stuck in my mind. Although powered by a small capacity motor bike engine it would streak away from the traffic lights leaving conventional cars far behind.

I love playing chess but felt I did not have the IQ to challenge the grandmasters until I realised like the three wheeler it is not the capacity of power that is important but how you use what you have. The grandmaster looks for patterns and selects a small number of possible moves. In fact the grandmaster spends less time than ordinary players in deliberating which is the best move.

How I solve logic problems is to select a part of the problem that is in the question and work backwards. The answer is usually concealed by misdirection, as you can see in the following examples.

I stepped into the lift on the ground floor with three other people. The lift stopped at the second floor. One person got out and four got in. At the third floor four more people got in but before
the next floor the cable broke and all the passengers died. How did I survive? In order to survive I could not be in the lift. So I look for how and when I could get out of the lift. I have deliberatively made the answer obvious as this is a demonstration of thinking and the answer is I got out at the second floor.

Often my first assumption is incorrect and I need to start at the beginning.

A boy and a doctor were in a speed boat. The boy is the doctor's son but the doctor is not the boy's father. Who is the doctor? The information is deliberately presented in a way to conceal the answer. I know the boy is a son and normally you need two parents. So if it is not a father, the answer must be mother.

Sometimes facts tell you where to concentrate your attention.

A man nailed a horse shoe to the trunk of a tree just at the height of his nine year old son. The tree grows three inches each year. After three years where will the horse shoe be?

I need to think through the information and remember facts are there to mislead me. How does a tree grow? The horse shoe should be in the same place as a tree grows from above.

Just to recap on how I think about solving logic problems.

I use quality thinking by selecting the key information and think it through.
I remember information is presented to confuse and hide the answer. I remember words can have several meanings or be used as names.

I went to the market on Friday and returned two days later on Friday. How is that possible?

If you are stuck, look at the last statement in my recap on thinking about solving logic problems. In this situation one can think of the Friday used. Friday can have a double connection as it could be that Friday was a horse I travelled on there and back. Friday does not have to be a weekday.

Trident.

In view of the government decision to renew Trident as a deterrent to a nuclear attack I feel it strongly important thought should be given to the consequence of what this means. I am not advocating for or against Trident, which is several submarines each currying about 16 atomic missiles. The question is can new trident be fit for purpose?

Who or what is our potential nuclear opponent? If like me you see current news the answer must be terrorists. A submarine needs a target to threaten retaliation to stop a nuclear attack.
First one has to consider the terrorists live and operate in the UK and second they are suicidal. How can a nuclear submarine stop an attack? You may think terrorists need to posses nuclear weapons in order to attack the UK. Just think outside the box and consider people who are prepared for suicide can distribute deadly radio active material killing hundreds before they die. How can an atomic submarine be useful in those circumstances?

There are ten nuclear power plants in the UK and need I say more. How can Trident protect them without a clear target and if one Trident missile is launched Trident has failed as a deterrent and instead becomes one of the four horses of the Apocalypse.

Is Trident a modern day Maginot line that failed when put to the test. The Maginot line was constructed as a military fortification by France to protect it from attack by Germany before the second World War.

I am reminded of a story about a man being watched by a policeman. The man was standing in the road waving his arms. The policeman asked him what are you doing? The man replied I am keeping the giraffes away. The policeman said there are no giraffes. The man said yes that is because I have been keeping them away.

The last nuclear stand off was between Russia and the USA. How could having Trident protect the UK from either nuclear fallout or intimidate Russia from targeting the UK?

What other countries pose a nuclear threat? Some people suggest Iran as a possible nuclear opponent in the future despite their present attempt to normalise relations. Would it not be more reasonable to cultivate relationships rather than taking a hostile view.

One of the rules for self defence is do not carry a weapon in case it can be used against you. The difference between the Maginot line and Trident is the Maginot line was static but Trident
has a potential to be used as a trigger against the UK. To explain more could be construed to helping an enemy. How can we be sure Trident is not used in this way?

Was the decision of the Government based on Trident's nuclear deterrent capabilities or some other reasons?

The government has greatly increased spending on surveillance of potential terrorists in the UK. Is that because the greatest nuclear threat of attack is there?

It may seem the questions are against Trident but if you are trusting your life for instance to a rope would you not test the suitability and strength of the rope before using it?

Miracle.

There are well documented observations of statues of Mary the mother of Jesus spontaneously weeping and many devout people have displayed the marks that seem to appear to represent the pain and suffering of the crucifixion of Jesus. There are numerous accounts of the image of Jesus which miraculously appears on floors or in unexplained areas and some of these visual appearances have persistent red marks that can not be cleaned away. Could these things just be created by people's own wishful thinking or is there something in them which is beyond explanation?

This is a true account of a series of thought provoking incidents and concerns a family that had one little girl of about ten years old. The little girl had a serious medical condition that affected her bones and joints, it was a physical state that made it impossible for her to walk and once conventional medicine was not able to provide a curer the family turned to find assistance from a famous spiritual Indian man. The mother of the little girl had been talking to a friend who gave her a book about the life and miracle accounts performed by Sathya Sai Baba who had several Ashrams in India. The family decided to travel to India to see Sathya Sai Baba. They needed visas to enter India and the mother travelled to London but on having arrived was dismayed to find the embassy closing. She had heard that no one could go to see Sai Baba unless they were meant to and she was unsure if the closure of the Indian embassy meant that they should not be going. Standing at the doors she prayed for aid, silently she said that if it was true that Sai Baba did want them to get to India to see him then could he please assist them in some way. It was at that moment that the mother opened her eyes and felt her heart almost stop for a few seconds as it was then that as the front door was being locked a tall distinguished Indian lady in traditional dress came out of the embassy and walked right up to her. The lady asked the mother if she could assist her and on hearing the reason for her trip she immediately escorted her into the embassy to ensure she received the necessary visas, she took her individually to each part of the embassy and waited with her while she completed everything she would need, having done this she wished her well for the journey. The odd incident at the embassy had given the mother a lot to think about. How had the lady known to come out to her at that time when she needed it and why had she insisted on assisting her so well? The mother did not know if it was a reply to her prayer but it certainly had seemed as if what she had silently said had found a physical response.

Having arrived in India the family found it was difficult to find accommodation as the area surrounding the Ashram was packed with visitors. The family had their daughter to look after, she had physical needs which meant that they had to find suitable accommodation and with a grandmother with them there was a need for them to find the right temporary home. Again as if by divine assistance when the mother asked for aid in a minute or two of silent prayer, it was not long before she felt a tap on her shoulder. Looking round the mother was met with a gentleman who told her that a ground floor apartment had became available to the family. For two weeks each day the family visited the Ashram with hope of a private meeting with Sathya Sai Baba but with no success. There were just two days of their visit left and the little girl sat on the floor in front of her mother as people prayed for healing. The mother said to her little girl that if she wanted to be healed then maybe she could ask for it from Sathya Sai Baba with all her heart but the little girl looked at her mother with a confused expression and instead pointed at a group of severely disabled people, she said no mummy they need his healing more than me. Later that same day unusually Sathya Sai Baba who generally visited the Ashram in the mornings made an afternoon appearance and as he walked he came to a stop in front of the mother and little girl. He stood and stared as if his eyes were X rays and placed his his hand on top of the little girl's head. Firmly he pressed his hand on her for at least ten minutes. The incident the mother said was chilling because there was an intense expression on his face and she was worried about what he was seeing as physically wrong in her little girl. The unexpected incident of the Ashram caused a sensation as many people afterwards congratulated the little girl on how fortunate she was to receive a special blessing. While the mother and girl were happy, they had not seen any physical alteration and so were not able to understand why everyone was so excited about what had happened. Many people said to them that you have your miracle, even though you may not know it now.

Before leaving India the mother was pushing her little girl in her chair down a street, she felt happy that the blessing had been given but despite everyone saying that their miracle had been given to them she could not stop that sense of sadness that she had in not seeing any physical improvement in her little girl. Still unable to walk it felt to the family as if they had not achieved what they had hoped and it was then that the mother and little girl met an elderly Indian man. The man, who looked remarkably like Shirdi Baba the person who had preceded Sai Baba, offered a medallion with an image of both holy men to the little girl. The Mother looked for cash to give him in return for the kind gesture, she had but a few coins which he kissed and took with good grace.

You have had your miracle, even though you may not know it now. Later on the truth of what had been said to the family in India by many people would become evident. Unknown to anyone the top neck bone of the spine in the little girl was growing inwards and crushing her spinal cord. A later trip to the hospital for another reason had shown up the emergency condition. The doctors said that any sharp movement could have severed the cord and that the little girl would have become paralysed. On the return from India a scheduled operation to straighten her spine revealed the serious condition and it was when she was being examined by her consultant that one of the registrars noticed the necklace around her neck. He couldn't stop himself and said in an astonished voice that it was Sai Baba. The consultant asked who that was to which the mother and daughter both replied about what their trip to India had been like and who Sai Baba was, looking interested no one at that time knew how evident that time in India was going to be for the little girl. Tests had been arranged for the little girl in the hospital and a time was about to start which was all linked to that one unexplained incident of a blessing in India.

The first amazing fact was tests by electrical equipment stated there was no measurable activity in the spinal cord but the little girl was able to move her arms and legs. While the test was being done the technician went for a colleague to see if he could explain why the machine was not registering any movement in the little girl's body. The colleague came in and on asking the little girl to move saw the necklace that the Indian man had given her. He recognised the figure on the medallion as Sai Baba. Having smiled he explained that he had a friend who was a doctor, a man who knew of and went to work in one of Sai Baba's Ashrams. All the fiends thought he was mad as he had given up so much to go to volunteer there but on looking at the little girl and not being able to explain the odd action of the machine he said that maybe they were the ones who were wrong and that maybe there was more to the Indian Holy man who performed a miracle than they had thought. It was interesting because seeing the medallion seemed to be enough for the man in the hospital and he stopped looking for an explanation for a fault in the machine, he said they would not find any technical reason for what was happening and that it was good the little girl could move her arms and legs so well.

The second unexplained but life altering incident was that the problem in the little girl's neck was found at a most fortunate of times. The consultant who worked on the little girl said that no one could have planned for such good timing as all the most prominent experts from all over the world in the field of the necessary surgery had a meeting at that time in London and were able to jointly arrange a technically difficult operation for the little girl. When the scans of the spine were shown to the surgeons many of them believed she had passed away from the trauma of what the spinal cord had done to the c1 bone and others thought that she would have paralysis from the neck down. It was said by the consultants who were present that it should not be that the little girl could be alive or having not suffered any form of paralysis from the neck downwards but that if as it was said this was so then it was nothing short of a miracle. The consultant explained that no she was able to move all her limbs and it was then that a surgery unlike any other was planned to be performed.

A lot of the surgeons who had looked at the individual scan of the little girl thought that damage would have been done to her spinal cord and this was explained to the mother as something that could not be repaired. In an operation that would see a surgeon having to work through an already fitted metal Halo brace, the top spinal bone had to be removed and replaced by new bone taken from her skull.

The third miracle would take place during the ten hour operation. The mother had gone to the chapel in Great Ormond Street hospital and in the quiet asked for some sign of good hope. There was no draught or wind but she saw fluttering down a tiny piece of paper with the printed words. He is where he is needed.

The operation was successful and the little girl came out of the operation sitting up. The surgeon could not understand how well she had got through it all and said that he had literally seen the spinal cord puff back up to its normal size without any scratch on it. The little girl made a swift recovery except that the bone was not fusing at the base of the skull. The surgeon felt he would have to operate and join the bones with another piece of metal but the mother had not wanted more surgery for her daughter if at all possible. The little girl had faith that it just needed a bit more time to repair by itself. The surgeon did not believe that it would be able to fuse without the aid of surgery but he said that he would allow for some more time if just to appease the concern of the little girl and her mother. It was after a few weeks on a check up that the surgeon went quiet for a long time. The silence had both the daughter and mother worried. After an incredibly long time the surgeon said that he was sorry but he had to be sure because the bones had indeed fused safely and so well that he could not see the line from where the surgery had happened.

All these incidents were seen by one family. A family who had one trip to India and had an experience that was to alter all of their lives. We may all see or hear incidents that are unexplained and not know how they came to be but when something happens that does restore faith or do something impossible then do we really need to ask anymore questions about it. Maybe nothing else needs to be done other than to acknowledge what has been. The family's account seems to suggest that it may not always be the miracle that you expect which happens but it could be that one experience unlike any other which goes on to a save a life in a way that no one could have known.

What is Justice?

What is Justice?

In the news today I saw a man by the name of Rob Lawrie. An Ex-soldier who had been to the now labelled 'Calais Jungle' he had seen and felt what it meant to be living in those circumstances. As a result of his experience there Mr Lawrie listened to the pleas of a Father and tried to smuggle Bahar Ahmadi, the man's four-year-old little girl into Britain. The Father has said that he was seriously concerned about how his child would be able to cope with their living condition and that with the onset of Winter he feared for her life. The condition of the 'Calais Jungle' is somewhat of a moral dilemma for anyone to have to experience, a former chemical waste dump, the place is not somewhere that toddlers would be safe to traverse. Mr Lawrie had agreed to aid the Father and child, the plan had been to take the four-year-old to relatives living legally in this country.

On being uncovered Rob Lawrie is now a criminal in the eyes of what is termed a legal justice but in the spirit of human decency and in the interest of a moral justice people seem to have a different view of what is right. Headlines quickly reported that a petition which called for the former soldier to be spared jail after trying to smuggle an Afghan refugee out of Calais received 15,000 signatures in one day and that increased within a short time. With more people hearing about the Ex-soldier who faces prison for a 'crime of compassion' the 49 year old who faces a 5 years French prison sentence has had a lot of comments in support of his action. Petitions are being directed to Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond in an appeal to stop any prison sentence for Rob Lawrie.

The incident has made me think. We can comment but do we know what we would have done in Rob Lawrie's situation. It is hard for me to think of life without the things I accept and to some extent do rely on to live. A day to day life where physical discomfort is a reality may be difficult to consider but when this same scenario is applied to your child or vulnerable loved one is it not an impossible thought with which to live? One would do all that they can for a loved one and when you are faced with the possibility of being able to save a child what would be, what could be the lengths you would go to? We all have an idea of what is right and wrong, but when an attempt to save the life of a four-year-old child is questioned by a legal sense of the word justice then shouldn't one ask what is justice if not to act in the interest of a child and aid someone in their right to live. Rules govern our society and without laws there would be anarchy but one should always examine each case on an individual basis because if one follows the law without a sense of moral sensitivity or logical reasoning then what kind of law do we really have in society?

The Power of Suggestion.

It is strange that just a simple remark can have such an influence on your state of well being. A little compliment about how you look can lift your mood or a comment such as “you do not look your usual self” can have an emotional influence which can alter your physical appearance. When you hear someone's negative opinion, without realising it you can readily start not to feel well and if other people re enforce the original remark you may think you should actually see a doctor, although you may have no real symptoms of illness. There are positive uses for this well known phenomenon as it can be used for treating patients by suggestion and using a placebo in a medical trial can have good results.

This knowledge about suggestion has been used to great effect by film makers such as Alfred Hitchcock in the shower scene of Psycho. In the film the audience is given deliberate but suggestive snippets of viewable and audible information. No direct answers are given but audience assumption can be made when one has a fleeting view of a knife held high, a shriek sound is then heard and then the sombre music as the blood exits down the plug hole. Jaws had a drastic influence on the public by preceding the appearance or attack of the shark by easily recognised music. It was a technique that trained the audience into an expectation for what was to be later in the film. Suggestion is used to influence what the audience think they know. A little audible suggestion and already people are imagining the ferocious scenes to come. In fact a good part of the film was made simply by suggestion without anyone actually seeing a real shark.

Suggestion has been used in entertainment by hypnotists and also as an aid for everyday conditions
such as to stop smoking or control irrational fears.

TV show makers have used suggestion to captivate audiences with introduction to historical buildings that have a reputation of being haunted and I remember a scene where a sceptic took
part who vehemently doubted the existence of spirits, he was left in the darkened halls but on hearing unusual noises tripped and cried out “that's it, they have got me!” He was unharmed except for his bruised pride. It is odd though because nothing physically harmed the sceptic but his belief of what had gone on caused him to verbally state something he claimed could not happen. If left in the same kind of building in a similar situation of suggestion would I have been terrified? There is only one answer to that... Definitely.

I want to tell you about another incident when my then future wife was returning from work late at night. She got off the bus, she should have been met by a male member of her family as the area was exposed and a series of murders had taken place locally. After a while waiting she had gotten cold and anxious as she was completely alone in the poorly lit street. She thought to herself I have three choices. Take the long route home that is better lit, I could take the shorter way but it is darker or I could stay here and wait.

She felt a spot of cold rain on her cheek and started on the shorter walk but after a few steps there was the definite sound of following footsteps. She reasoned if it was a member of her family they would call out to reassure her. She increased her speed but the following footsteps increased also and so she tightened her grip on her handbag preparing to swing it with all her strength. At the important minute she felt a hand on her shoulder and hot breath on her neck. In that moment she turned to face her pursuer. Her heart pounded and in the gloom she thought she was about to see the serial killer as her last vision before death. For a moment she could hardly distinguish a face, many images kept forming in front of her and the influence of suggestion would not let her see what was in front of her. Faces moved about, images altered and shifted until minutes later the loved face of one of her relatives drove the suggestive images of the expected murderer from her mind. The relative had fortunately been the one who had been trying to follow her in his attempt to walk the rest of the way home with his sister but the influence of suggestion had almost brought the situation to a far different conclusion.

Suggestion, or the belief in it is a very strong emotive reason to act or think in a certain way. Many people will be able to have it aid them in their lives, be it through therapy or for the means of entertainment. Some say that they are not influenced by suggestion, but when it comes down to it I think most people will have had suggestion intervene in their life in some way.

Succubus and Incubus.

Always interested in unusual stories, a friend of mine told me about a most uncomfortable incident. I have altered the names so as not to cause him or his family any embarrassment and this blog surrounds what happened.

John had been married for quite a while, he had a happy life and was the person everyone aspired to be until the odd experiences started...

Nightmares. We all have them at some point in our lives, often stress related, they can be a temporary sign of life's difficulties. Nightmares can be a childhood cause for comfort or a teenage sign of adolescent growing pains. We can grow out of them, live through them and when my friend told me about them I tried to reassure him of this fact.

Despite my reassurance John continued to suffer. The lack of sleep started to influence his work, his activities and his social life. We could all notice the short tempers, the man who had been so disposed to laughter switched to a man who smiled less and less, the alteration in temperament was difficult to witness. A friend upon whom we all relied, the night time terrors seemed to take hold of him in a way I had not seen before and the man who rarely slept because of what he had claimed to experience was a person who had started to look almost tortured. Physically he had always been a smartly dressed individual but because of his experiences he had started to look unkempt, thin and almost ill. Finally after a while of watching the trauma he was going through I asked him to tell me a little more about the nightmares.

Nightmares can signify signs of what we experience in life, I expected accounts of warning signs, obscure and even horrifying images but nothing prepared me for what he was about to tell me. My friend's experience was about a lot more than a nocturnal jaunt to a far off surreal land. In his experiences there were physical references of what he seemed to be living through each night, with eyes widened and a hand pressed into the sofa he closed his eyes. He started to tell me in exact detail about the way each night time episode would occur, his words almost whispered like a man who had lived to tell the tale I have to say I found it hard to imagine what could have reduced a strong, happy man to such a sight. The friend I knew continued to look at me, I at him and for a while the only sound to be heard was that of his rapid breath, in and out, he started to speak in a clipped way about his recollection. It was almost a frightening ordeal in itself to live through but do it we must I told him because I had to know what had gotten him into that state. Could nightmares ever do that to a person? My friend, he began that every time in the same way the night time experience would start and each time no less scary. After having gotten into bed, he would lay there or sometimes sit but each time after a few minutes an incident would happen, an odour, a smell would be detected in the room, sickly sweet the perfumed scent would slowly take over his sense of smell, bit by bit it would distort his sense of any other smell until all he could note in the room would be that particular perfume. It cloyed, it clung and tried to suffocate him. He hated it because it was not so much the smell but what it signified to him. After the smell, the first time he had turned on his side, distractedly thought what the smell was or where it could have come from and that was when he felt something wet on the back of his neck but before he could investigate something encircled his waist and alarmed he tried to rise only to find himself being held by something, a something or someone laying behind him.

The strong, overpowering surge of perfume had washed over him like a tidal wave, a smell that he did not recognise and knew was not a perfume used by his wife. That first time he had tried to struggle against the force holding him, pinning him to the bed but for a few minutes he was left trapped, a prisoner in his own sheets as the thing forced him into the bed. The smell had been everywhere he had explained with a voice full of pain, he had felt fear but it was the vulnerability of it all that had caused him the most distress. Events that first time had gone on and as he pushed his arms out he had felt uncomfortably warm, wet breath on his neck, exploring hands had moved over his body... He opened his mouth to call for help but could hear no sound, his eyes he closed for the fear of what he would see. It was a waking moment of terror and the unwelcome being had moved on top of him when he had heard the noise of his wife entering the room, he opened his eyes and that was when he could see that everything in the room was as it should have been, the neatness of everything seemed in stark contrast to the brutality of what he had been through. There was no one in the room who should not have been, no way with windows locked and no one else apart from his wife in the house for there to have been anyone else with him. I, feeling relief, told him that it must have been a nightmare then but that was when his expression caused my heart to sink a little, there was that something in his eyes that told me what he was about to say next was not what I had hoped to hear. He asked me how could she smell it then, and when I asked who smell what, he replied that his wife had smelt the perfume and looked at him accusingly that night. Of course he had known nothing about how it could have got there, but that first night as his wife had laid next to him the only thing which had stopped her questions to him had been the odd way in which the perfume smell disappeared moments after she had gotten into bed. Thinking nothing more of it, the couple had slept but John had the distinct sense of unease, questions pervaded him and every time he closed his eyes he lived through that same ordeal of the trapped sensation that unwelcome nightly visitor had given him.

Each night since that first time, John had lived through what he called the wakeful horrors. It had gotten so bad that he no longer wanted to walk up that long staircase to a fate he knew awaited him because every night was similar in the terrors that he had to live with. I asked him if each experience had been the same and he explained that as the nights had gone on, his experiences had become more vivid, one night after the smell of the perfume had invaded his bedroom, the force had pulled him on to his back. That time he had seen a glimpse of something, of what he was not sure but a half a female face had stared back at him in the darkened gloom of the bedroom. In one horrible moment the expression on that half a face made clear what her intention was and John in shock was unable to stop what was happening to him until his wife had once again walked in. It seemed as if the one thing that stopped, or lessened the experience was the presence of his wife. What or who ever it was did not seem to like her.

When Jane entered the bedroom, the perfume would dissipate and activity would cease. Not knowing what to do, my friend said who wants to admit that they are too scared to get into bed without their wife. Too scared of the events that had happened. He had thought he had imagined it all, the first few times, had nightmares as the explanation for the next few nights but after that it was becoming more difficult to explain and how could his wife smell the perfume if it was all made up by him in some way. Distracted, upset and confused the problems of John's night time life were a subject that was breaking the couple up, Jane could not understand why her husband was not able to sleep and the perfume was a cause of conflict for them rather than evidence of what was being experienced.

It was the feeling of being victim that had John most annoyed, his life was being ruined by the sense of his own vulnerability. The perfume, that smell was driving his wife and himself crazy, thoughts taking over his consciousness about how that force could take advantage of him again some night.

I made some investigation into explanations for this type of experience and learnt that it could be a phenomena more commonly experienced than one may know, in history there have been many reports of hauntings but more specifically beings who are intent on night time disturbances. These are known as a Succubus that is a being who visits sleeping men for physical gratification and an Incubus known as the male counterpart.

My friend's life was nearly ruined by it all, his experiences had left him almost loosing his job, his home, his life and it made me wonder how quickly things can fall apart if your normal routine is stopped somehow. The activity you will be pleased to know has stopped for my friend, no one knows how or why but it was a timely occurrence and he now has had many a good night's sleep as a result.

Trick or Treat it's Halloween Week.

The time of year is fast approaching Halloween, a brief break in our yearly routines when it is believed that spooks and fellow beings walk about the living. Children look forward to dressing up and knocking on neighbour's doors to be rewarded by money or sweets. My own daughter at an early age got me cutting and hollowing out a pumpkin in preparation for the year's event. I have to say that at that time of year I do look forward to seeing my own artistic efforts when lit by a candle and located in a prominent position in the window. Although the mess inside the pumpkin is a little unpleasant to clean out, the finished exhibit is a pleasure to view.

Last Halloween as usual all was set and darkness increased the atmosphere for the first knock on the door. A group of varying sizes of frighteningly dressed children grouped around the door, ghosts, vampires and ghouls, after the usual chant they received their goodies and ran off happily. It was some time before there was another knock on the door and fully armed with sweets and pennies the door was quickly opened to reveal... nobody. In surprise I checked to see if they were hiding but I could see nothing. Our door looks out onto an open drive and it is somewhat easy to see anything near to the door and the surround area. On seeing no one I have to admit the feel of Halloween did take on a somewhat more tense aspect and it only increased when I heard the sound of children laughing but this time right in front of me. With no one to visibly see and the sound of audible footsteps on the concrete area in front of me I scanned the whole drive that stretches to the front of the garden. Nothing. No one.

As I closed the door and continued with a quiet, calm rest of a Halloween evening there were no more Trick or Treaters and it did leave me with a slighltly more spooked sense when the obvious question type thought came, had I just had a special Trick or Treat visit? Had other unseen children joined in for a bit of Trick or Treat? I have to say it did make me think.

Supernatural Encounters.

The supernatural can be recognised in many forms, although the general public's first experience with witnessing a tangible form might be on TV or the big Screen and may frighten the viewing audience half to death. The real close encounter is something completely different and can catch you by surprise. It can range from an innocent conversation by a little girl on a day trip to a historic monument with a former resident who had departed hundreds of years ago to an unwelcome visitor late at night that wishes to share a bed with you.

The same as in life there are good and bad people and therefore departed spirits will have their own reason for materialisation and contact. It is possible that sudden death may have left a spirit in a sort of limbo and not able to move on to the next state of being, this might explain the paranormal activity surrounding a spirit who might be trapped. In these situations there have been intriguing reports of mediums being able to assist by informing people of why the activity is occurring, finding out how to ease a spirit on and putting an end to the ordeal for both sides. These instances are many, possibly more than you may think, and often the encounters are not paranormal but everyday explained causes which have not been considered. There are those few situations which do hold interest and those are the ones where a verified and reputable medium does find a reason other than that of the ordinary in a residence...

On the anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic something unusual occurred. A young lady sound asleep was roused from her slumber by sound and movement of her bedroom. In the low lit area a vivid scene of activity had taken shape as her bedroom was moving at an angle and she could hear the sounds of the distraught passengers of the Titanic there in her bedroom. Faces in anguish searching for their relatives crowded her view but in this account of one young girl she spoke calmly to the entities and reassured them after the passing they would be re united with there loved ones. She was able to put a peaceful end to the noises and icy temperature which had become evident in the bedroom.

There are times when you may experience something completely out of this world. It was night time and as usual my wife and I were in a deep sleep. My wife was laying beside me until she became aware of a presence, at first she thought I had suddenly become amorous but the bear hug grip was becoming uncomfortable and when she looked over to me to tell me to stop she was shocked in the gloom to see me still sound asleep. She found her arms were pinned to her side and breathing was becoming difficult. In alarm she tried to call for aid with her remaining breath. “Get it off me.” I awoke but was confused at what was happening as I could not see what the trouble was. Again my wife called for me and was struggling against the force that was holding her. My little girl had woken too and cried “There is a man holding mummy.” I had felt powerless as my attempt to aid my wife altered nothing. Whatever it was, something I couldn't visibly see could exert force on my wife but I could feel nothing to pull or hold. Then whatever it had been released its grip and departed leaving us all shocked and extremely puzzled. My little girl described what she saw which had been a man with red hair and beard.

Logical possibilities do often explain accounts of supposed paranormal activity but there are those few incidents as with those I have mentioned which do mystify... In my own personal experience something very real and traumatic happened to my wife, I could see it by her reaction and on talking about it we investigated many causes. My wife did not have any medical condition which would explain the constriction of her body and why had my little girl been so adamant about seeing a man with red hair and a beard, something I could see evidence of but someone I had not seen. The experiences of the unexplained can be many and not all of them are as one will have seen in a film or made up event, there are instances of wonder, intrigue and interest.

Alternative Treatment.

Isn't it odd the way that little incidents can build, patterns can form and one not notice them in their life at all. Generally when someone is rushing about, as we all tend to do, it is difficult to ignore those larger life issues, the bills, the household necessities and family commitments take over. When one is life full they are not as attentive to what one thinks of as the little things in life and sometimes those little warning signs can turn into something a little more major...

One day I had a little incident and thought I had just been clumsy, when out in the garden I had lost my balance and fell over backwards. I landed on my back without any harm although my feet had hurt with pins and needles I had focused more on the fall itself and not asked what had caused it. Clumsiness was my go to excuse and thankful that I had not done myself a serious injury as I had been holding garden sheers at the time I got on with the life tasks ahead. Later that same week I then suffered a severe attack of cramp in my leg muscles but I knew the cure and regained my stance of speedily standing up and proceeding to push hard down on my leg and foot which would within minutes end the cramp. A few days later I was sitting on the couch talking to my daughter when my mouth became dry and I felt I needed a glass of water. On standing and having taken a step I felt faint, weak and instantly collapsed on one knee. My daughter who became increasingly alarmed called my wife who brought me water with some sugar dissolved in it. After sipping the water I felt better but needed to relieve myself and despite my wife and daughter insisting that I stay seated I felt I had to get up and walk to the downstairs toilet. It was while I was in the toilet that I passed out hitting my head on the radiator. My family heard the sound of me hitting the floor and telephoned for an ambulance. I am very grateful for the medical attention both from the ambulance crew and later the medical staff of the local hospital. I needed two stents to relieve a blockage of plaque which had formed in one of the arteries to my heart. I have the greatest respect for the surgeon and after care given to me in the hospital. I am a little annoyed at myself for not having noticed all the little warning signs my body had given me. For all the alerts, announcements and information one knows about regarding their health it means nothing at all if one does not put the theoretical into a practical point of view. I had developed a major heart condition which with a bit of attention on my part could have been noted quicker.

I do think that we all have a tendency to be either too aware or a little let's put it off and see about our health issues. It is absolutely understandable that one may feel self conscious or not want to take things too far but with health sometimes a little practical perspective is needed and one should be alert to what their body is telling them about their state of health.

On leaving hospital I was given half a dozen different pills and this was a shock considering that I had never had to take any seriously course based medication before. On a check up visit the specialist heart nurse repeated the information given to me by the hospital. She told me that I would need regular checks as the medicine could damage my liver and kidney function. As it so happened at the time of the visit I was not feeling too well and asked my wife for a glass of water. The nurse volunteered the information it could be the side effects of my medication. I thought about it for a long time and decided that with all the alternatives that are available I may be able to find a suitable and appropriate balance between prescribed chemical and natural treatments. It can be beneficial for one to do a bit of examination into what natural alternatives are options as often one can find that complimentary natural sources do treat the body directly while also providing extraordinary health benefits in other areas. The natural options can be taken alongside some or all of one's prescribed medication, there are certain interesting natural fruits and ingredients that can work with one's own recovery.

I decided to find alternative natural treatment for all the conditions that my medication covered with an aim to look at options that had no damaging side effects to my liver and kidneys. I did my search, looked at my options of which I was glad to see there were many and on a check up visit to the doctor I asked which of the medications was going to reduce the existing plaque in my arteries. I was surprised to hear him say there is no medication for that, he explained that if the moment should arise that I had an attack of angina again in the future then an appointment would have to be made to have another operation. Having already happily located cholesterol lowering products, natural alternatives and inserted them into my schedule of treatments I found I could reduce a lot of the medication I was on. I have found a natural pure fruit juice that has been used in a study and provided positive results in reducing existing plaque in arteries. I have a regular intake of an amount of natural cloves from a product of the onion genus and I take naturally based cholesterol lowering enhancements.

I have found that my health has improved, I feel well in myself and looking back I am far more at peace with the state of my body. The real moment of truth was when I had to have my check up with my doctor who proclaimed that I was doing well and that he did not need to see me for a while. While I do like my doctor and appreciate all his effort I was pleased that he was not in a hurry to see me again.

Everyone must of course act on an individual basis. I have found three interesting points which I have taken from what could have been a very negative experience. I have realised that through history medicine has progressed by trial and error, sometimes a treatment or pill will be later found not to be the best course of action and there is a wide variety of natural treatments available which could compliment any prescribed treatment. When it comes to one's health it is important for you to be the authority on YOU and not to just meekly accept advice, do listen and act on medical information but also investigate your condition yourself. It is not necessary for one to choose one route or the other when it comes to medicine or natural alternatives, do your own investigation into what has happened to you as you may be shocked by how well an alternative treatment may compliment your conventional medical routine. In all these areas increasing one's knowledge is important. Knowledge is key because the more you know, the more you can understand and make well informed decisions about that issue of your health.