THERE'S MORE TO LIFE THAN THIS (Theresa Caputo)

Not everyone believes in an afterlife and many scoff at the idea of mediums.  No matter what your ideas on the topic of spiritualism, you'll enjoy this memoir.  Theresa Caputo is personable and unapologetic about her gifts.  She shares herself with her readers in a very personal way, recounting her first experiences with "talking with dead people," her tormented, anxiety-ridden childhood teenage years,and  her acceptance and development of her psychic abilities.  She talks about being a wife and mother and about her friend and mentor Pat, who guided her in controlling and directing her encounters with "spirit."

By far the most interesting aspect of "There's More to Life Than This" is Caputo's discussion of the evolution of the soul and Heaven, which makes perfect sense to me in light of my Catholic beliefs.  She believes that our souls live multiple lives, basically moving closer to God with each incarnation.  Some people, the ones who seem to have it figured out, are "old souls" that are closer to perfection.  She suggests that we ask the spirits of those that we have lost to protect and watch over our loved ones and that we open ourselves to the small signs that they leave for us to let us know that they are around. One of the most profound (to me) ideas that she puts forth is that we each need to surround ourselves with positive energy, a sort of buffer of light to deflect negative energy and help us to be open to good things.  I for one found reading this book to be a powerful and uplifting experience.  It helped me to clarify some things.  I'm glad that I picked it up!