This afternoon, as I do every October, I re-watched Monster Squad. WONDERFUL movie. One of my favorite lines is at the beginning when the kids are being repremanded by the principal for putting more energy into studying monsters than paying attention in science class. He tells them “The point is that monsters are not real.” And Sean says “We don’t know that, sir.” That’s it.  There is so much that we don’t know, and simply admitting that we don’t is the first step. 

Now, I’m not saying that studying the paranormal is going to help you save the world, as the kids did in the movie. On the other hand, I’m not going to suggest it won’t. Being aware of the greater extent of reality and respectful of the full range of other beings may help us solve the ongoing problems of the modern world. It can’t hurt.

In the movie, the kids were better able to deal with the monsters when they did show up, because they had bothered to learn about them, and prepare for dealing with them. Knowing how to ‘ground and center’, how to ward, and what sort of invisible beings can harm (and how to tell which type you’re dealing with) is useful. It may be of more daily use to know how to dowse for lost objects or use reiki or other forms of healing for injury or illness, but there are times when esoteric knowledge can come in handy.

The point, and the point of CTCW, is that simply dismissing all the parts of the world that we don’t want to think about as unreal leaves us at a disadvantage. And I particularly like the calm, mature way Sean deals with the Principal’s disbelief. He doesn’t try to convince him, he simply calmly asserts his right to his own point of view. At many times during the movie, the kids have to deal with the reality that they don’t know everything they need to know. But as kids, they know what to do about it: keep learning. Be open to learning new things. Be willing to seek help from those who know more.

Be ready to stand up for yourself. We don’t necessarily need to know it all, but we have a right to be open to a greater reality.