“My name is Calum Nymet. All of this,” he motioned around him, “was made possible by the good luck of being in the correct place at a fortuitous time. No, I was not to the manor born. In fact, I was reared in humble circumstances and worked my way through an education. Being a commodities trader was only a day job, although a very lucrative one. I was able to retire by forty-five and begun following my real passion, which was truly tapping human potential. Perhaps you’ve heard of Esalen?
“No matter. Human potential doesn’t dismiss science, but it does not accept scientism. Science, you see, is a method of learning about the world. It’s extremely effective. The human brain, however, has evolved, like all animal brains, for survival, not for finding all the answers. Think of it—our species has survived by reasoning based on our five senses. Those senses pick up stimuli that help us avoid danger and find food, shelter, and the ability to procreate. Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you choke. Sex is part of the picture, obviously.
“Our brains do not sense all possible stimuli. To use just one example, we know that birds navigate by sensing the magnetosphere. We live our lives as if it didn’t exist. We don’t feel it or sense it in any way. It is just as real as light or sound, but we can measure it only with instruments. And birds aren’t the only ones with abilities to detect stimuli that we can’t. They do, however, demonstrate that all of our science, as robust as it is, is based on partial evidence. We can’t see x-rays. We can’t hear micro-sounds. They blend into each other at some place along the spectrum of how sound and light interact, but there are other sources of information that we don’t register at all. Our bodies are being penetrated by neutrinos every second. We don’t feel, see, hear, taste, or smell them. They are part of reality, however.
“The human potential movement suggests that we have the capacity to develop greater abilities than we routinely show. It’s not romantic navel-gazing. It’s based on the many, many documented cases of human abilities that scientism simply dismisses. Telekenesis, psychokenesis, out of body experiences. These things happen and have happened throughout human history. Since the empirical measures are difficult, or even impossible, scientism says they can’t exist. Did you know, Dr. Economy, that laboratory studies at Princeton and Duke Universities demonstrated beyond statistical probability that ESP is real? The numbers weren’t impressive, but consistently above chance. Universities, however, are political institutions and these programs were quietly eliminated. Similar programs still exist at the University of Virginia and Edinburgh University. In other words, these aren’t the ravings of a madman. They are real.
“The implications of these studies, not yet demonstrated in any real way, is that the spiritual realm may exist. We don’t know what it is, but that doesn’t mean it’s not there. It suffers from its mythology being taken too literally by believers. This country especially is unduly influenced by biblical literalists. Their embarrassing outlook makes it difficult for anyone to get funding or peer acceptance for exploring bits and pieces that they may have correct. So that’s what I’ve done here.
“I’ve been fortunate in my investments. I had many breaks in my career. Sometimes I think that I was meant to have them so that I could do my real work, which is to explore the unacknowledged world of human potential.
“Some years back Lindsey found her way here. She’d escaped a very bad situation. She also had some human potential abilities. She stayed here and became my mentee. She left and we stayed in touch, non-verbally. I tried to send her off with some creature comforts, but she refused. I understand that she stayed at Dickinsheet, as she’s been telling me, then Honest Oahusha. That’s when you came into the picture. You’re one lucky man.”
Terah knew that, but he wanted to explain that he and Lindsey weren’t lovers or anything like that. They’d been living raw and facing hard times. Instead he finished his supper in silence.
“What I propose is that the two of you stay here a little while. After you both left society some strange developments have taken place. There’s been a global pandemic. A highly contagious virus with an unusually high mortality rate. Really, we’ve seen nothing like it. Businesses are shutting down. Some supplies are running short. The government, treating it like business as usual, has been dropping the ball. Still, conditions are unlike either of you have ever seen them before. People are staying at home. Sheltering in place. It’ll be hard for the two of you to continue to restock supplies as you have been doing.
“Don’t look at me as if I can tell the future in any detail. Yes, I knew where to find you this afternoon, and I have worked on developing my abilities without the distractions of having to make money, but I don’t pretend to be some guru or messiah. I’m just a lucky man who pays attention to what actually happens, without prejudice. There’s more of it than you’re likely comfortable to admit.”
“We should wait until tomorrow to take him to the circle,” Lindsey put in.
“Indeed. It’s already beginning to get dark. I imagine Dr. Economy has questions that will while away the evening. It’s written all over your face—you don’t need to be psychic to see that! In case you’re worried, I regularly host retreats here so my home is well stocked with supplies. Retreats, of course, have been cancelled due to the pandemic. Large gatherings of people are currently illegal. I’m not sure how this will play out down the road, but I don’t require the modest income from the retreats to stay solvent. I do miss not being able to buy books in person, however.”
“Speakin’ of books, why don’t we show Terah your library? That’d be a good place to talk.”
Terah felt that familiar stab of jealousy. Here was yet another man who know Lindsey better than he did. Why could he not know her? Still, the prospect of seeing books again was appealing. He wasn’t prepared, however, for what he saw next.
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