Steve has asked me to introduce myself before I tell you what I have to say. I’m Saul Ravencraft, but most friends call me “Doc.” I’ve been helping the Museum of the Weird behind the scenes for a while now as what you might call a practitioner of the esoteric arts. I am not a paranormal investigator who bumps around in the dark with a collection of gadgetry, hoping for “evidence” that I can show my buddies in the cubical on Monday. I get my hands dirty, sometimes damned dirty, as I walk with the things that many people just don’t want to believe. It’s probably better for them. They can spend their time watching reality TV and sports on seven different screens and stay out of the way of the rest of us. But you, my friend, are not going to be so lucky. Your eyes are already at least partly opened or you wouldn’t even know that the Museum of the Weird existed.
You have probably noticed, as I have, that there has been an increase in weird news. Sightings of strange animals like Bigfoot have become more common, and more commonly reported. UFO activity has gone off the charts. Suddenly, even the TV is filled with programs about ghosts and the paranormal. You think this is a coincidence? Ha! There are no coincidences.
Is it the end of the world? Not hardly – at least not “The World.” It’s going to be the end of some people’s world as they are finally going to have to face up to the fact that some of the strange things that they have been ignoring and explaining away will not be ignored. They are going to have to deal with the fact that some of the people around them are going to wake up and tune into these things and they won’t know what to do about it.
You may remember the song – or you’re probably to damned young to know about it – “The Age of Aquarius.” (The full lyrics are available on this web page.) Yes, this song is full of the time it was written, (you wait until your grandkids laugh at some of your favorite music) but they’ve essentially got it right. We are moving into a new age, from that ruled by Pisces, the fish, to Aquarius, the water-bearer.
The age before Pisces was Aries, characterized by war and fire (and ironically use of the battering “ram”.) This was a time of conquest and adventure. The age of iron. In the age of Pisces we saw the rise in Christianity – complete with a symbol of a fish – among other similar paths which called upon all people to be more spiritual in nature. You could argue that this age has been as warlike as any of them, but now it’s been for a nobler, more spiritual purpose!
The Aquarian age is going to be filled with new freedoms as everyone is empowered to move beyond our work-horse existence into something more personally fulfilling. It’s already happening. The same technology that is giving you up-to-the-minute reports on UFO sightings, complete with maps and video, are also providing access to old information, as occult and other older writings are being made available through the Internet. People who thought that they were the only one’s who had ever had a paranormal experience are now finding others, so they can finally discuss what happened and what it really means. People who had never dared to experiment with contacting spirits, working with the powers of their mind, or trying their hand at magic are becoming curious again.
Yes, yes, science will continue to progress and we will have wonderful things from it all… but how we partake of those things will change, for the better. It won’t all change immediately for everyone. We’re at the very beginning of this age, but it is changing. I know that you can feel it.
If your mind is open and you’ve always wanted to explore the weird, that’s natural. We’re being called to that. Those who take up the call are going to make some amazing discoveries, that will be dwarfed by the people after us. Those who block it out are going to be confused and angry. (You know some of them!) Stay tuned here and I’ll try to do something for those of you that are ready.