to View - Griffith College Dublin

10
LIFESTYLE AND CULTURE
THE CIRCULAR
A Sixth Sense or Nonsense
I ain’t afraid o’ no ghosts
By Angie Crowe
With mediums like Derek
Ogilvie selling out venues
worldwide, what is it that drives
us to part with our money - and
are we being conned
It was with an open mind that I
headed to the Helix to find out
what exactly Ogilvie had to offer
me and everyone else at his sell-out
spiritual gig.
When I say open, I mean as wide
as my sceptical mind can get - a
slight contradiction but I’m the
kind of person who looks forward
to reading my horoscope whilst
simultaneously scoffing at the
notion that destiny could possibly
lead me and one-twelfth of the
population anywhere, let alone to
the same place-
.
I was curious about this “Baby
Whisperer” who claims to be able
to talk to both babies and dead
people, and even more curious
about those who have paid to see
him.
Next to me sits Jacqui Gilborne.
She lost a friend last week and is
hoping he will give her a sign as she
“never got to say goodbye”. She is
not alone: “I’m hoping to speak to
those I’ve lost,” says Martina Byrne
from Bray, who has no doubts that
“I’m Billy
Connolly on
acid”
spirits exist.
Sitting behind me is Catherine
McDonald from Tallaght who
came with her mother. She is an
angel card reader who firmly
believes in the spirit world and is
also hoping to speak to loved ones
who have passed on. The more
people I talk to the more I realise
that there are very view sceptics
here.
The show gets off to a dramatic
start and we are unexpectedly
immersed in complete darkness. A
booming, ghostly voice fills the
theatre and cries, “Help me, HELP
ME!” My scoffing nature is sent
into overdrive so fast that I haven’t
even managed to laugh by the time
the voice moans, “I’m stuck in the
toilet.”
Okay, so clearly Ogilvie has a
sense of humour about what he
does and the ridicule it attracts.
When he runs on stage he jokes
with the audience pretending to
have the inside story on their sex
lives. This is followed by a painful
to watch, but equally hard to look
away from, pelvic-thrusting dance
routine, to YMCA as he loudly
declares “I’m Billy Connolly on
acid.”
Then down to business; Ogilvie
states that the show is: “Not about
me, not really about you, it’s about
who’s coming through from the
spirit world.” This need to respect
the spirits is something he repeats
throughout the show.
He starts with a quick succession
of questions. “Hands up a Debra
whose grandmother has passed
away Do you have a shoulder
problem Or pain in the right arm
A problem with teeth on the right
side A front door that won’t close
No-one” No takers.
He moves on, “Anyone who’s
got a son Patrick He has a problem
with his right knee Recent
throat infection Also a pain in his
right leg eight years ago
Everything has to fit. I’ve got a little
boy here saying ‘Tell her I know
about the ear infection.’” Catherine
McDonald puts up her hand.
Everything fits but her son’s name
is Keith Patrick.
Then another hand rises; this
woman has a friend Debra who was
supposed to come and couldn’t
make it - but she assures, “everything
else fits” regarding the first
spirit.
He goes with this and a rapid
succession of ridiculous questions
follow. He actually asks, “Has she a
house with a front and back door”
“Yes,” validates her friend and she
adds, “The back door sticks.”
“Excellent,” he enthuses. I look to
my notes. Didn’t he say front door
“I am not a
fake”
This continues to the point that
there are more inaccuracies than
things that “fit”. His method seems
very similar to what cynics call the
cold-reading technique, whereby
the medium asks lots of random
questions and the person is so desperate
to connect that they cling to
what fits. Ogilvie keeps repeating
“It all has to fit,” but with the
advantage of my notes, I can see
that it does not.
However, he comes back to
Catherine and gives her personal
detail that it is amazingly accurate.
He tells her he is speaking to her little
boy who she miscarried. He
gives incredible detail regarding her
house and her habits, such as an
intense picking of her toenails. We
can see her mother weeping on the
monitor.
The show continues on in much
the same way moving from strained
to more accurate readings. How
does he explain this The messages
from some spirits are weaker and
harder to interpret. “I’m not perfect.
I’m not a fortune teller” he
tells us.
A Child’s World
After the show, many wait to talk
to him. He walks towards the emotional
group of people clutching
pictures of their dead children and
loved ones, and they close in
around him. The staff put pressure
on him to leave as the show has
gone way over time and they need
to lock up. He apologises for not
being able to speak to everyone and
gives his details promising free individual
readings next time he is in
Ireland. He says “I am not a fake”
and tells us he has agreed to do the
famous sceptic James Randi’s million-dollar
challenge this year,
which no other psychic has ever
won, to prove his authenticity.
Amongst the crowd of people
who refuse to disperse, I watch him
reach for one woman and sympathise
with her for the death of her
baby, and I hope for his sake that if
he is not genuine - he at least
believes he is. Otherwise there is a
lot of bad karma coming his way- if
you believe in that sort of thing.
By Caroline McGuire
I was falling asleep on a bus last
week, when a child’s excited tone
interrupted my slumber. The little
girl told her mother she wanted to
be a princess like the character in
her magazine. Her mother laughed
and said “Yesterday you wanted to
be nurse; last week you told Granny
you wanted to be a pop star!” The
girl responded by saying, “Yes
mum but I want to be a princess
too and a nurse and a pop star, and
an animal doctor.”
I cast my memory back to when
I thought like that wee girl.
Everything was possible; I could be
anything or anyone I wanted once I
was a big grown up. But as soon as
we reach a certain stage in our lives,
this sense of absolute belief that
we can become whatever we want
disappears.
When we are young, we believe
that if we want to be a teacher it
will magically happen. But when
the time arrives to succeed in our
chosen profession there is no
magic wand to help us. In reality
most of us go through immense
stress, tears and sleepless nights in
order to acquire that all important
profession. And don’t even think
about moaning that you are not
content in your job- it’s your career
now!
Similarly as children we view our
future relationships through rosetinted
glasses. Every wee girl and,
I’m sure, every wee boy (although
maybe at a later stage of his development!)
thinks that when they
grow up they are going to marry
prince charming or a beautiful
princess.
Well, maybe not exactly a prince
charming riding on a horse, but
someone fairly handsome who just
happens to be the perfect gentleman.
Little girls believe they will fall
in love and live happily ever after
like all the ladies in their childhood
fairytales. However when we grow
up, we soon learn relationships are
complicated.
Of course relationships are fun
but they involve a lot of difficult
and testing moments that as children
we could never have imagined.
As adults the idea of finding Mr.
Perfect fades; we come to terms
with the idea that no-one is perfect,
and we have to accept the one we
fall in love with- warts and all.
Friendships are viewed differently
when we are children also. Recall
how quickly you changed best
friends. One day Katie was your
best friend just because she took
her new toy to school. Friendships
were about making friends with the
popular people.
Most of us probably thought
our childhood friends would be
part of our lives forever. After all
they were the first people we
became close to in our younger
years. As adults we realise how
important it is to have someone to
share things with and we hold on to
our treasured friends.
Yes life changes greatly as we
move from the child’s world to the
adult world. But why should we
abandon our inner-child, just
because we are adults Being a child
was fun; being an adult is fun too,
but only if we keep a sense of what
we were like as a child with us
always.