Email Question: - Logical Thinking and Spirits

I received an email from a gentleman asking about how to determine whether his parents are at peace. His background is similar to mine, a background in science- so we were "taught" to both be logical thinkers. Because our logical mind always tries to explain things and usually discards unexplainable events, and calls things "coincidences" we don't recognize signs from spirits (those who have passed into the light). For the person that doesn't have mediumistic abilities, the only way that those spirits of passed loved ones can communicate is by coming to us in our dreams.
In fact, in this case, both parents did appear in this man's dreams. One thing I've noticed in speaking with a number of people, however, is that usually within the first year or two loved ones who have died will appear in a relative's dreams. However, that tends to fade.
After thinking about it, I believe that the spirits have given the person left behind, a year or two's worth of signs that they're okay in the afterlife. After that, they hope the living relative moves on with their lives and stops grieving. It's important that we who are left behind understand these signs, and that our loved ones who pass want us to move on.
We can, however call to those who have passed, and they will hear us. More on this in a future post.

Article on Book in Prince George's County Gazette

An article came out today in the local county newspaper about the book!
(PHOTO: Leah L. Jones/The Gazette
Bowie author Rob Gutro, photographed at his home Feb. 11, wrote Ghosts and Spirits: Insights from a Medium. It was published in December.)

Bowie author details contact with afterlife in ‘Ghosts and Spirits'
by Dennis Carter | Special to The Gazette
Rob Gutro says he can't go anywhere without chatting with a ghost or spirit.
Gutro, a Bowie resident and author of "Ghosts and Spirits: Insights from a Medium," said he even had contact with the afterlife during a cruise in the Eastern Caribbean Sea this month. After a spirit identified himself as "John" three times, Gutro approached the woman "John" was trying to communicate with.
The woman said she had an Uncle John, and Gutro said she thanked him for approaching her.
Gutro said that this happens a lot since he encountered his first spirit — his deceased grandfather — at 14. In 2005, Gutro began detailing his dozens of otherworldly encounters, and adds analysis and the crucial differences between spirits and ghosts in his book, which was released Dec. 30. Gutro, deputy news chief at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt and a former radio weatherman, said ghosts have not yet crossed over into the afterlife because they might have "some unfinished business" or simply don't understand what happened to them.
"Sometimes they're not aware that they're dead yet," said Gutro, 47. "When people get killed suddenly — like in car accidents, for example — it takes a while to process that you're actually dead."
In contrast, spirits have accepted their new form and entered the white light seen by many who live through near-death experiences, he said.
"They've passed on to the next stage," said Gutro, adding that there's a surefire way to know if your loved one has become a spirit: "You can dream about them."
Ghosts, Gutro writes in his book, won't play a starring role in your dreams.
Gutro said he strived to support his experiences with scientific analysis. This often helps skeptics embrace the idea of an afterlife and separates Gutro's findings from unproven superstitions passed down in folklore.
"Energy can only be transformed; it can't be destroyed," he said. "Science is much more effective in convincing people that it's a reality. ... If you have a theory and you're a good scientist, you try to prove it."
And it's not just people who contact Gutro from the great beyond. After his dog, Buzz Wyatt, died, Gutro said the animal made 13 attempts to contact his owner.
"One of the times was the sound of claws on the hardwood floor," Gutro said with a chuckle as he rattled off a string of Buzz Wyatt memories.
Gutro said his dedication to honing his sensitivity to the afterlife is a very different path than the one taken by many mediums. Seeing a ghost or spirit for the first time sometimes frightens mediums so much that they avoid further contact with the deceased.
He admits seeing his grandfather materialize before his eyes 34 years ago made him flee the house, but Gutro is determined to maintain contact with those who have passed on, both family members and strangers reaching out to their spouse, child or friend.
"This is a gift," Gutro said, "and not something to fear."
"Ghosts and Spirits" is available on Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com and Virtualbookworm.com.
Follow Gutro's blog at http://ghostsandspiritsinsights.blogspot.com/.

ARTICLE LINK: http://www.gazette.net/stories/02252010/entepri152057_32547.php

More Photos from the Barnes and Noble Booksigning

Sunday, February 21 marked the day of my first book signing for the book "Ghosts and Spirits: Insights from a Medium." The turnout was great, and I had a wonderful time.
My thanks to Darleen, the manager of the Barnes and Noble in Annapolis, Md. for making it happen. Photographer Robert Carter captured these great photos- Thanks, Robert! (to see more of Robert's photography visit: http://rearlcarter.zenfolio.com
Here are some more photos from the event:
(RIGHT - Photo: my partner Tom and I)

(LEFT- Photo: Jeff poses with me for a picture)


(Photo: I was talking with another local author who was also participating in the event. She wrote a book about the Murder of Mozart. She was also sensitive to energies and spirits, so we had a lot to talk about).


(Photo: My friend Diane came to the book signing, and I gave her a hug- her spaniel, Tegan came to me, and her story is included in the book!)

An Anniversary

(Photo: Buzz the puppy in 2004)
We all acknowledge anniversaries in different ways, and sometimes with flowers. Today, February 22, five years ago Rob's first Weimaraner puppy Buzz-Wyatt lost his life from a reckless driver when his leash opened. It's always been a somber day, but Buzz has come back to me (Rob) about 13 different times, including audible signs a visible appearance and various other ways. I know Buzz is at peace, so I'm content with that. Besides, if that tragic event didn't happen, we wouldn't have adopted our Weimaraner Dolly, who brings so much joy to our lives today. Buzz had deep green eyes, and everyone that saw them said "that puppy had an old soul." I totally agree. He was here for many reasons, and he taught me so much in a short time. I could go on, but I won't.
As I do on this day every year, I drop a single red rose on the spot where the accident occurred to let him know I shall never forget him (he knows that anyway, as do all spirits of loved ones who have passed on). So on the way home from a doctor's appointment today, I paid a quick visit to the site, told him I love him and brought him his rose (see photo).
It's so important to know that when someone passes away, they're only gone from the physical plane. They're still around whenever we call them, talk to them out loud (although you should limit those conversations to a private place so people don't think you've got issues), or think of them. Energy (the human spirit) can never be destroyed, only converted to a different form.
Here's to you, Buzz, I will always love you, and thank you for letting me know you're still checking in from time to time.

Some Ghost stories At the Book Signing

At the book signing I met a woman and her 6 year old daughter who told me of a female presence in their home.The woman apparently died there. I had the little girl draw a pic of the woman she saw, and it was a woman in a long brown dress holding a flower basket. The mother mentioned that a Menonite family lived in the old house, and I believe that this woman was the mother of that family. The little girl said that she hid her head in her hands after seeing the woman, who then appeared to vanish through a wall. I told her that the woman probably lived there before but wouldn't harm her. I instructed the little girl's mom to tell the ghost aloud that she doesn't live there any more- that their family now lives there and there's no place for the ghost. The ghost needs to go to the light. She agreed that the ghost was nothing to be afraid of, but it was a little unnerving to see things moved (apported).
Another fellow author told me that she's had quite a number of experiences, including feeling some oppressive force. I told her that it was likely not an entity but a bad energy, likely from people who are projecting bad feelings against her. The same woman also mentioned that she's been sensitive to ghosts, and had some encounters in New Orleans. She was fascinating to sit next to while I was signing books!

First Book Signing a Success!

SUCCESSFUL FIRST BOOK SIGNING!
Wow. Today I learned what it was like to have a book signing (That's my face in the middle of the group of people). I signed books in Barnes and Noble in Annapolis, Md. from 2-4 p.m., along with 11 other local authors. My thanks to Darleen at the store for arranging it and sending out postcards and advertisements.
To my friends who came and showed support, thank you all so very, very much for coming out to the book signing today. I was totally overwhelmed. I can't thank you all enough for the support, love and friendship. Most of all, thank you for believing in me, and for helping make this such an exciting first book signing event for me. I'll always remember it!

A Ghost in Grand Turk Island's Coverely House

As I mentioned before, Tom and I took a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean in early February. I encountered several spirits on the ship that were around people, but those weren't the only entities I sensed. There was also one on Grand Turk Island.
There are 6,000 residents of Grand Turk island and the only industry is tourism (so we were told). Wild horses (that were once raised there) and sea salt mining used to be other industries.
When we were there, we noticed that it was still reeling from the devastation brought on by Hurricane Ike in 2008. We stopped at St. Mary's church and looked inside. It was obviously rebuilt and one of the nicest buildings on the island. We also had a tour in the National Museum, where we learned about the 3rd largest coral reef in the world that surrounds the Turks and Caicos island chain.

We then stopped at what appeared to the the main street of the island, and saw various bed and breakfasts. One old ruined house had a plaque on the wall surrounding it, that said it's haunted by a one-armed ghost. It was the house of Alfred and Millicent Coverely, built in the 1830s and moved across the street (it was originally on the beach and would've been washed out to sea from hurricanes).
(PHOTOS: The haunted house on Grand Turk and Rob next to the plaque outside the house)

The plaque says, "Legend has it that an American couple who lived there following the Coverelys were greatly disturbed at night by the sound of footsteps dashing up an down the staircase, and they saw a small, plump white man with one arm. The former owner, Alfred Coverley perfectly fit that description, as he only had one arm!
Ironically, I got my tell-tale headache when we walked by the side of the house, so that was my confirmation that there is, indeed a ghost in the house. We stopped and took a picture of me next to the plaque.

Question about Diff. Btwn Ghosts and Spirits

QUESTION RECEIVED: WOW. Pls. tell me what is the difference between a spirit and a ghost. I think I know but I want to be sure. my guess is my mom is a spirit now.

MY RESPONSE: Ghosts are Earth-bound entities that choose to stay behind for several reasons. They feed off of negative energy (fear, anxiety, pessimism) and can manifest themselves in the presence of those emotions. They typically either have unfinished business, died suddenly and didn't go into the light so they're stuck here; or need forgiveness from someone they've hurt in life.
Spirits are souls that have passed into the light. If you can dream of someone that means they've passed into the light. You can't dream of someone stuck on Earth. They are at peace, while ghosts are not.

A Mom's Spirit Comes to me on Vacation

The third spirit encountered while on a cruise ship last week was a very emotional one. Tom and I watched a "mind games" show on the cruise, and afterward our new friends that we call "A2" because their names both begin with A, introduced us to the mentalist and his partner. The mentalist, Bob Lawson, was amazing. When he joined us at our table, he offered to do a handwriting analysis for us, and it was pretty spot on.
When his partner came over, I sensed a lot of emotion. We all started talking about ghosts and spirits, and then the conversation topic changed. While I was sitting next to his partner, I got a couple of names, that sounded like "Adelaide" but I couldn't be sure. It was the spirit of a woman trying to communicate with me, that I knew. She showed me a cat, a color like "green," (I'm color blind, so what I see as green may be blue) a white "house" or building, and poured me full of so much love and emotion for Bob's partner that I was physically shaking. I couldn't stop either.
Bob's partner told me that he had a very strong bond with his mother who passed, but her name was Margaret. (Hmmm... so perhaps Margaret was trying to tell me about someone else in the family who had previously passed, and that she was with? I don't know). Regardless, Bob and his partner told us that when she passed, she refused to be waked in a church. Instead she wanted to be waked in a white house- a funeral home, and she was. Apparently, she was very happy that they honored her wishes.
The cat belonged to the woman's daughter (Bob's partner's sister). It was a cat she got before her mother passed. I assume that the mother loved the cat, too.

The final point was about the "color" that she showed me. Turned out to be more "aqua" or blue-green, and it was about a pen at the funeral home that mysteriously appeared. Bob said that when he and his partner went to the funeral home for his mother's services, there was no pen to sign the guest book. When they went looking for one and came back minutes later there was a pen in the holder. The pen wrote in aqua colored ink, unlike the black ink used on all the other entries in the book. They said that no one else came behind them, so they didn't know where the pen came from. They thought it very strange that the pen appeared from nowhere.
The spirit of Bob's partner's mom was there to convey that she's around him, watching over him all the time, and was so full of love that it made me shake.

Spirit Encounters on Vacation

Last week I took a cruise in the Eastern Caribbean (and perfectly timed it to avoid record snowfall in the Mid-Atlantic). We've been saving for a year for this cruise, and it was on a ship that was only two years old, so I was pretty sure there wouldn't be any ghosts on it. There weren't any ghosts, but there were spirits that tapped into me to give messages.
SPIRIT IN THE THEATER - During one of the evening song and dance shows, a gentleman came to me and gave me his first and last name and told me that he needed to tell Marjorie in the audience that he was around her, and he was safe. Of course, sitting in a crowded theater as one of the audience made it impossible for me to identify who Marjorie was, so I regretfully couldn't pass along the message. I assume that it was likely the spirit of a husband who was married to a woman in the audience. Most of the people on the ship averaged in age between 60-80, which is fine by me, because they all went to bed by 10pm as I do!
(PHOTO: Georgetown University)
SPIRIT IN THE OPEN CAFETERIA - A second spirit came to me while Tom and I were having lunch one day. A man called to me several times. In fact, each time a woman walked by our table (which was about 3 times as she kept getting up to get food and drink from the buffet) a man said "my name is John." He told me he was connected to that woman. He then showed me ivy, like the vine that grows up the sides of buildings, and I heard "Ivy league school." He said that the woman has a book of his that she inherited, that has a dark cover, and to look where the bookmark was in it. After finishing lunch, Tom convinced me to walk over and talk with her about it. I did. It turns out that John was her late uncle. He used to go by "Jack" and he was an attorney that graduated from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. An "Ivy league" school. She wasn't sure about the book, but made a note of it. The following day, the woman stopped me and told me that her uncle Jack was gay, but never came out of the closet (she apparently felt comfortable telling me that after seeing me with my partner). She said she thought that's why he felt comfortable coming through me to give her the message. I agree.
I'll put the next spirit encounter on a later blog this week.

A friend's childhood story about a Ghostly communication

The following is an email I received (reprinted with permission) about a friend's encounter with an intelligent haunt (ghost) when she was a child. Fascinating story, and I appreciate her sharing it:
S wrote: This was when I was young, about 7 or 8 or so. Every Christmas my parents would take my sister and I to visit my paternal grandmother's family. They lived in a rather large house, very old. According to my great aunt it had been in their family since the Civil War. I didn't really like visiting that part of my family since they were very distant and I didn't really know them. So I used to go to one of the sparsely used parts of the house to read a book alone.
One Christmas while I was reading in one of the older rooms, a nice lady came in and sat down with me. The room was poorly lit (maybe the cause of my bad eyesight lol) so I never saw her clearly. All I could see was that she wore an old fashioned dress and her hair was dark colored. When she sat next to me I became very cold. She said that I should put on my jacket, which appeared right next to me when I know it wasn't there before.
We talked for a long time. She was nice, very friendly and I got the sense that she was lonely like me. I told her about my best friend, J., and she remarked that he was a part of my soul, and me him. She said that we should never let our friendship die. We had to stop when my mother called for me. I asked her name, which she said was "Maggie." I said that I was glad to have met here and that I was glad I had found a new friend. She looked very happy, and I think there were tears in her eyes.

I never saw her again after that. When I questioned my relatives, they said that there was no one called Maggie in the house. J. says that this was the first sign of my psychic abilities. We both agree with Maggie's assessment of our relationship. Still holding true to this day!
MY COMMENTS: Very interesting story, and totally understandable.
I absolutely believe that you saw a ghost in the house- a former resident. Obviously it was an "intelligent haunt" as the ghost was able to communicate with you and sense things about you and J.
I'm not sure if you have a way to research the past owners of the house, but I wouldn't be surprised if you learn of a woman named Margaret or Maggie, that lived there. - It may be in records in city hall. Let me know if you pursue that!
As children we have the ability to have open minds. As I mentioned in my book, open minds are necessary to see and sense ghosts and spirits. As we grow older, we learn to be logical and lose the ability to be open-minded. We also tend to become more pessimistic, which also acts as a barrier to the senses. Thanks for sharing your story. I love hearing about these events.

My Dad's Spirit Assists My Mom Again

Tuesday, February 2, 2010. Happy Groundhog's Day. Well, it was happy until the little rodent saw his shadow in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania today - indicating 6 more weeks of winter for the Mid-Atlantic.
Today was also significant for another reason - My dad helped my Mom again. I called my mom to check in with her, as I usually do, and she told me what happened today.
She said: I have been looking for the back plate to the replacement kitchen wall phone for a couple of months now, and today your father led me to it. What's strange is that I found it on a chair right next to the microwave oven in the downstairs kitchen. I use that microwave almost daily and I know it wasn't there before.
For some reason I asked your father to help me find that missing part of the phone today. I felt an urge to go downstairs, so I did. I happened to walk over to the microwave and was surprised to see that sitting on a chair right next to the microwave, was the missing piece of the phone! I can't believe I had not seen it over the last several months!
What happened here is an apport! My dad's spirit moved the missing phone piece to a place where my mother always goes (next to the microwave). I had a similar experience when I asked my dad to help me find something and I found myself standing in the garage. It was there I found it, too, which was odd, because it had nothing to do with the garage.
My mother also mentioned that the light in her hallway continues to flicker whenever she walks by it, and she said "I know that it's your father." It is.

Email received

I received this email today from someone reading my book "Ghosts and Spirits."
I started reading your book last night- I really like it. As you suggest- am keeping an open mind and have already learned stuff I didn’t know- spirits help us- we help ghosts- kinda like spirits are good, ghosts, not so much.