On my walk around the neighborhood this morning shortly before sunrise, a brilliant full moon hung low in the west just above a tall, billowing thunder head. Illuminated by the unseen star we call our sun, it struck me how thoroughly many of us human beings tend to divorce ourselves from the natural world as we becoming increasingly technologically advanced. Not a new concept, of course, but this morning that thought magnified the perceptions I had on another walk just a few days ago.
Before I continue, here’s a moon picture to get you in the mood, courtesy of NASA. If you haven’t been to their website before, give it a try and play around with the universe for a while.
On that other walk I mentioned, it was right after the break of dawn. So quiet. Unusually quiet. No wind. Nobody up yet. No other walkers. No dogs barking. Totally still. Then an owl started hooting nearby, followed by the continuous throaty chirping of a tree frog across the street.
Here’s one that sometimes lives in a potted plant my wife keeps just outside our front door.
A toad joined in the chorus with his own unique song and within seconds, a few birds sang their versions of wake-up calls.
Five minutes later, birds everywhere seemed to awaken and filled the air with special appreciations of the morning. All that lasted for about ten minutes and then stopped almost as if orchestrated.
After a short gap in sound, somewhere a dog barked just as a car with its lights on rounded a curve in the road coming towards me. In the far distance, a truck engine revved up. Next, a hollow crash like a dumpster being dropped disturbed the peace as only a dropped dumpster can. Also in the distance, the murmur of traffic on nearby I-4 somehow quickly became apparent—time for our civilization to overshadow the natural world.
In thinking now about those two walks in the early morning, I’ve been increasingly comparing them to brief episodes where I’ve experienced something that might be considered supernatural or paranormal.
My conclusion is actually a reinforcement of something I’ve believed for a long time now. For what it’s worth, here it is. Just as how many of us in the developed world find ourselves separated from nature, for an even longer time, we have increasingly separated ourselves from a part of nature that we now call the supernatural or paranormal. In lifting ourselves out of superstition and ignorance, we as a species have also cut ourselves off from things that are a very natural and normal part of our heritage.
So, do yourself a favor. The next time you see the moon or hear an owl hoot, see if any of what I’ve said touches a place deep down inside you.
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If you enjoyed this article and would like to read more about this subject, you might like to take a look at one of my latest books.
Titled, Carl Jung, Hauntings and Paranormal Coincidences, it uses the great psychiatrist’s own paranormal experiences as jumping off points for some of my own life events and those of other very reliable people. Many of these stories take place in St. Augustine.
Listed below are direct book links to some of the larger book retail outlets in the English-speaking world where you can find it:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, Kobo (Canada)
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