For some reason, the idea of the supernatural has been coming up a lot in conversation or in different activities I've been around in the last few days and it's made me think about the realism of it all. I'd like to address it and clarify my own thoughts on the subject. One of the boys I know recently went to a psychic who told him a lot of information that struck me as interesting and specific. Ive been a diehard skeptic since a young age. Usually, one can pick out the trick used by these so called fortune tellers pretty easily. For one, they stick to very broad things that could apply to a variety of people such as "You will encounter struggles in the workplace at some point in your career" or maybe something like "In the near future you will come across a dilemma and your decision will dictate your future." Well...duh! Everyone encounters problems or forks in the road. So the psychic makes you feel like there's something very unique to you but in reality it's nothing that you didn't know was going to happen anyway and that can be applied to a million different occurrances. The psychic didn't tell you nearly as much as you filled in with your own imagination or the information of possible examples that you told the psychic afterwards to confirm their prediction. Another great trick is to say that the psychic is in contact with a relative or loved one who has passed on but that the loved one is ok and wishes to tell the person not to worry. Of course, we have connections to those who have died and wish to think that they are here still in spirit looking over us. I have absolutely no authority to say whether or not this is true. It's one of many possibilities, although from my own personal standpoint I don't believe it...but many people do so I'm not going to argue it. Anyways, usually the psychics aren't specific about this either, they might say that an aunt or a grandmother send their regards, but only rarely do they give details.
We just sort of fill in the blanks because we want to believe it. And it's entertaining to participate in even if you don't buy into it. It gives you chills and goosebumps thinking about the future. It's comforting to think that a path has been laid out for all of us, that there's a guarantee that we will be happy in life if we hear it from someone who can "see it" in our futures. From that standpoint, I would almost wish to believe it. How wonderful would it be to hear that i am going to be happily married, have children and live to see them grow up and have kids of their own? It would be so comforting not to worry about the job market or being unemployed because it's permanently scrawled in my future that I will have a healthy career. I'd love to hear of all my exciting romances that await just around the corner and that all I need to do to reach that future is follow the unwavering yellow brick road. Yes it would be great, but I just can't believe that. It contradicts every other notion and logic in my mind. My mom and I butted heads over this the other day when I asked her whether she believed in psychics and she said yes. I then asked whether she also believed in free will above all other things and defined free will as being able to determine what happens in your life and are not constrained by external circumstances such as divine will or fate. She said of course. So I don't understand how you can possibly believe in both things. You cant! Either there is fate and we are bound to follow it one way or another and the things we do (even if we think they are done out of free will) actually are part of the eternal plan. Or else we do have ultimate free will and the path we choose cannot be foreseen any time before we actually go and do it. I am of the mind to agree with the second option and thus cannot believe any psychic, no matter how convincing. Divine will is another matter, highly controversial, but nonetheless has an impact on my view of the reality of psychics. For now, I remain a skeptic.
I feel like I betray my gyspy roots when i say that. My great grandmother, Julie, came to America from Russia, but while in Russia traveled with the gypsies and passed on some things to my grandma and my own mom when she was little...I feel like I'm starting a new era though. I'll be the skeptic, scientific, logical one in my family and leave the mysticism in the past.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment