"Three Questions"

Almost every medium I’ve ever visited has mentioned my son. When he was around 10 years old, I brought him with me to a session. The moment he walked in, the psychic immediately said, “You see spirits too, don’t you?” She wasn’t wrong—my older son also has intuitive abilities. As time has gone on, my second son has slowly revealed that he too has abilities, albeit he is a bit more reserved with his disclosures.

When I was pregnant with my first son, we struggled to choose a name. Both of my parents were retired teachers, so every name we suggested came with its own association from their past students. For a while, it felt like this baby might never have a name! Then, about a month before he was born, I had a dream. In the dream, I was told he would be named after a constellation. The next day, I shared the name with my family, and everyone agreed it was the perfect name. Some psychics have said that this was not a mistake, but rather his name was by design.

When my son was just 2 years old, I attended a session with a medium from Goderich, Ontario. She was the first to bring him up, describing him as a “lavender” or “star child.” At the time, I had no idea what that meant, so I looked it up. According to new age spiritualists, a star child is believed to possess an elevated level of spiritual awareness, often connected to higher realms or other planes of existence. They are said to have profound intuition, empathy, and a strong sense of purpose. The term “lavender” reflects their calm, peaceful energy—akin to the soft, soothing colour. The medium also pointed out that such abilities are often inherited and suggested that both my biological children would likely share these gifts.

She then recommended we watch Horton Hears a Who, a Dr. Seuss story about an elephant named Horton who fights to protect a microscopic community that others refuse to believe exists. A few days later, while waiting in line at a thrift store, I noticed a stand of movies and DVDs. Right in front of me was a used copy of Horton Hears a Who. At the time I saw this as a coincidence, but now I know it was the universe guiding us. Needless to say, I bought the DVD and my son and I watched it together at home that night. As we watched, I told my son that just because we can’t see certain things—like bacteria or microorganisms—doesn’t mean they aren’t real. The same idea could apply to seeing spirits. It became a way to encourage him to embrace his unique abilities and trust in what we couldn’t always explain.

Fast forward about 3 year later, one summer morning between my son's junior and senior kindergarten years, we were driving along a country road. Our drives often led to interesting conversations, but that day, my son had three particularly memorable questions. First, he asked, “Why do people go upstairs for no reason?” I explained that, as you get older, you sometimes forget why you went upstairs in the first place. His second question was, “How do you know how old the Earth is?” This one was easier for me to tackle as a science-minded mom—I told him about techniques like dating rocks and the fossil record. It was his final question that left me speechless. Sitting in the back seat, staring out at the rolling fields, he asked, “What exactly is reality?” I honestly don’t remember how I responded, but I vividly recall being stunned by the depth of his question. Even as an adult, I knew few people who contemplated such profound ideas. As it turns out, it was no surprise that I always felt like he was an “old soul.”