Where Do We Go From Here? Paranormal Impacts of 2020

2020 was full of all sorts of ups and downs across the world. Racial tension has hit an all-time high that hasn’t been seen since the 1960s. A global pandemic has crippled many economies and businesses everywhere are being forced to close for good. Deaths have increased exponentially across the globe. Turmoil has increased in countries that were at other times in an uneasy holding pattern.
This is not a political article trying to persuade you to vote; nor is this an opinionated propaganda piece meant to serve as a call to arms to support an organization. This is merely a report on how I feel the social, political and psychological implications that came about from the horror show that was 2020 has affected the paranormal field.
    I live in a moderately sized town buried deep in the heartland of the United States. 2020 was exceptionally difficult. We were hit with (from what has been told to us) a land hurricane. Our seas of green corn fields and towns were devastated by a storm that hit us with sustained winds of 112 miles per hour and gusts of 140 that lasted for almost an hour. Our entire town as well as many others in a path up to 50 miles wide and 700 plus miles long all felt the impact. Power was lost for just shy of two weeks straight and many people who had beautiful homes are now homeless.
    A pandemic also enveloped the world last year. Coronavirus, a virus that from what I can tell mimics many other viruses and has mutagenic capabilities that would make Charles Xavier jealous, spread so rapidly that entire countries had to effectively close down and imprison the populations to attempt to slow the spread. COVID-19 left a face mask fashion statement in its wake.
    In the U.S., we also dealt with the highly controversial killing of George Floyd in Minnesota. Add this into the increasingly heated political season in America and we are literally a powder keg. Riots and looting continued for days from this event and continue globally in a fight of near biblical proportions. Good vs. Bad. White vs. Black. Heathen vs. Humanity. We have seen this battle rage on for centuries in England, Scotland, Africa, Korea and even the U.S. Hell, we even had to fight against ourselves in the 1860s and in other countries throughout our history.
    I think no one can argue the fact that this year has been a tumultuous roller coaster ride that has taken us to new reaches of sadness, anger, frustration and despair. One thing we believe in the paranormal field is that strong emotions energize strong activity. Take poltergeist activity. It is usually caused by a child or teen who is in a heightened emotional state. They lose control of what they can control mentally and telekinetic things start to happen. The world as we know it has changed and is changing more rapidly. Paranormal activity is going to continue to escalate and honestly, there hasn’t been a better time to be in the field.
    For the past few years mediums and fortune tellers the world over have been warning of a thinning of the veil that separates our world from that of the dead. Spirits can roam more freely as can other creatures from other realms. Demons, jinns, inter-dimensionals and others all can take advantage of this. We were warned this would happen. Theology masters would consider this the end of days or the book of Revelations playing out in front of us, but I don’t think we are quite that far (if it turns out I am wrong please feel free to say I told you so.) I feel what is happening now is more like a giant energy surge that has basically opened a huge array of portals.
    We all know we can increase activity by increasing energy. Why else would teams use white noise generators and machines that pump static electricity into the air? It’s simple physics. Just like with lightning, the stronger the charge the better the bolt. We have all essentially been a part of a worldwide one-mind experiment and opened Pandora’s Box. But this is only one part of it. The second part of the cryptic puzzle is that we are all home more.
We were all basically prisoners in our own homes, allowing us more opportunity to notice paranormal activity. The pandemic caused major disruptions to our normal lives. We have all learned what it is like to actually be home for long periods of time. Most haunted places can go unnoticed for years because no one is there to experience activity. Now that we are home we are around to see the shadow man walking down the hall or the soldier tattered and torn looking for his lost company. I think this plays into the increase as much as the prior point. We forgot how to slow down and pay attention and the paranormal is making that very apparent.
    Cryptid sightings are already on the rise as well. I mean I am not saying that Bigfoot, Nessie or the Mothman are going to suddenly appear and finally become case closed situations but sightings have increased for many cryptids mostly because of our pandemic. This has worked in the exact opposite way it has for ghosts. We see more spirits in homes because we are home more. We are seeing more cryptids because we are not outside as much. Just like the cities reporting animals that have normally stayed further away now walking down Main Street, cryptids have been the same. They are able to get more comfortable and come out of hiding without the fear of being ambushed by people.
    We need to be very cautious as investigators… ESPECIALLY new investigators. With the realms splitting at the seams you need to be very observant about what you are investigating. Do your research into what and how different types of entities can and do act. I hear all too often about “newbies” running into a place and having a jinn or demon latch on and ruin their lives. I hate hearing about this over and over and yet people still do not learn. This is a scientific field and needs to be studied.
We are living at a precipice of an amazing and unknowingly beautiful discovery and we all need to be on our toes to handle this properly. We need to have tact to keep us from looking like the village idiot in a tinfoil hat claiming the sky is falling. I will end this printed diatribe with this: Be safe in all you do. Work together and cooperate with other teams. We are all pushing toward the same goal and that goal is so much more attainable as a team instead of a single player. My door is open to any investigator and I hope I find the same with you. Happy hunting!

Brandon Marsh

Brandon Marsh is a 14-year investigator that has traveled around the United States studying and investigating the paranormal. He is also an ordained Christian minister and practicing Wiccan cleanser. Brandon is the executive producer and host of the ParaUnity Podcast which is listened to in 26 countries worldwide.