Read Embracing the Spirits: True Stories of My Encounters With the Other Side for Free Online Page B

…”
    “And?” I asked hesitatingly. “How did it go down?”
    “He believes us!” she said happily. “Callum reckons he
    thought Gary was around anyway. This just goes towards
    proving it all the more …”
    I could almost feel Gary grinning at me in the darkness, I
    just knew he’d be delighted that he had finally managed to get through to his family.
    “And …” continued Matilda, “Callum wants to meet you!
    He’s going to leave it until after Christmas and then he’s going to call you. He just needs to work out what he’s going to tell his parents.”
    I finally felt as though Gary and I had made some headway
    and it made me feel inordinately relieved. By the time I got
    off the phone, I knew that regardless of what happened from
    hereon, Matilda and I had honoured Gary’s visits as best we
    could. Gary had reached out to me and I had in turn reached
    out to his family. Matilda had been the catalyst and she’d fulfilled her role as mediator with aplomb.
    Gary 41
    As I write this, it’s been over a month since Matilda told
    Callum about Gary’s visits. I’ve yet to hear from Callum and
    his family and part of me suspects I may never do so. Regard-
    less of whether or not Gary’s family contacts me, I feel as
    though my job is done. Perhaps that’s as far as Gary wanted to take things, to simply pass on the message that he’s fine.
    But if they do call, I’ll be ready and waiting; and I’m sure
    Gary will be too. I have no doubt Gary will put his vibrant
    energy to good use and physically prove his presence to his
    family. But something tells me they might not need any fur-
    ther proof; I suspect they’ve felt their beautiful son and brother beside them all along.

chapter six
    L o v e r g i r l
    It wasn’t long before I was presented with another opportu-
    nity to try table-tipping. My best friend, Lou’s grandmother
    had passed away the previous week, after numerous bouts
    of pneumonia over the course of her last four years. The
    last years of Ivy’s life were spent in a fog of senility and poor health. In light of this, her death came as a bittersweet release for both Ivy and her family.
    For those imprisoned within the state of dementia, memo-
    ries and lucidity fade to the point where loved ones are some-
    times thought to be strangers. Although Ivy’s senility had
    taken a firm hold, there were however two faces Ivy still rec-
    ognised; those of her daughter, Valerie and her son-in-law,
    John. Ivy’s face would light up whenever they walked into the
    room. The rest of the family weren’t quite as lucky, and Ivy
    would politely enquire as to their identity whenever they came to see her.
    43
    44 Lover Girl
    Seeing Ivy in this state was particularly painful for her
    loved ones. In her prime, Ivy could be described as a cheeky
    firecracker, whose quick wit and passion for her family were
    always readily displayed. She also had a reputation as an incor-rigible flirt, which earned her the nickname of Lover girl. Ivy would laughingly refer to her granddaughters as Lover girls also, and the reciprocal nick names became quite the family
    joke.
    The way Ivy was in her final years was the antithesis of
    how she had once been, and it broke her family’s hearts.
    On Ivy’s last Christmas, her family were rewarded with a
    startling surprise. Rather than the deadpan, non-responsive
    version of Ivy they had come to expect, they were greeted by
    a frailer version of the ebullient, smiling Ivy of old. Although Ivy was still a feeble figure nestled within the expanse of her bed, her cheekiness and clarity seemed to have miraculously
    returned. In spite of not being able to speak, Ivy happily interacted with her stunned and delighted family.
    Buoyed by the sight of their smiling grandmother, Lou and
    her sisters regaled Ivy with an impromptu sing-along, launch-
    ing into Ivy’s favourite Christmas carols with ever-increasing vigour. The normally sombre old people’s home was transformed by the