Wood Spirits — Meg O'Brien

Do you believe in communication between the spirit and human worlds? Imagine on New Year's Day you and your sister are strolling toward the Cathedral in St. Augustine and you pass a bed of pansies waving in the Florida breeze. You turn to her and describe a teacher who called pupils pansies if illness caused them to miss school. Now suppose two days later you receive an e-mail informing you the instructor died on January First. Coincidence? Or was VM's spirit using the colorful flowers to send students the announcement, “Believe it or not I finally mellowed enough to reach heaven?” Or picture yourself dressing for your father's funeral when you're aware of a cardinal's clear chant. Coincidence? Or was his favorite bird declaring on his behalf, “I have rejoined your mother and we are watching over all of you ”? Or feel your anxiety when your heart starts racing as you begin packing your beach paraphanlia after a wonderful day at the shore. When you arrive home you learn your Grandmother died within the hour. Coincidence? Or was a loving Grandmother giving one last hug to a beloved Grandson? Or visualize your puzzlement at a dream about a wonderfully warm friend you hadn't crossed paths with in years. A few days later, you learn the woman departed this life. Coincidence? On the other hand, was a kindred spirit conducting a farewell tour of her like-spirited friends? These are real experiences of ordinary people who believe they are beyond coincidence. What do you think? Have you had a similar experience involving a departed loved one? Were you comforted? Skeptical? Has someone confided in you a communication from the spirit world involving an unrelated event? How did you respond? Were you touched or did you dubiously smile and say, “what a coincidence?" Wood Spirits is Erin Malone's reflective story about her unsought immersion into spirit world communications. A seemingly ordinary person, her childhood was disrupted when her Grams reveals to her daughter and husband her suspicion their ten-year old child has psychic abilities. Out of fear, the parents hurriedly isolate their daughter from the grandmother and never discuss the psychic capability with her. Her psychic gifts reemerge twenty years later after she befriends a young boy dying of AIDS. His death overlaps a reconnection with her beloved Grams treasures. Almost simultaneously, Erin begins receiving unsolicited communications from unknown spirits eager to use her as a conduit to loved ones. Though initially terrified and tentative about what action to take, Erin eventually finds courage to publish the messages on the Internet, attempting to complete the communication. Her brave action unleashes a recognizable web of interconnections. Either through coincidence or through a universal force Erin crosses paths with many of the intended human recipients. Her career as a journalist and her husband's career as an anthropologist are the sources of many of the chance encounters that occur in the St. Louis area and while traveling in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Is it a coincidence you're reading this book? Or is there some compelling force encouraging you to immerse yourself in Erin Malone's life? Possibly, these pages will help resurrect psychic experiences you've tucked away in your memory's recesses, hesitant to accept as real. If so, may Erin give you courage to explore their meaning. If you have no personal memories of extraordinary experiences, perhaps Erin's story will unleash an awareness of the spiritual forces in your own life in the future.