"Duma Key" by Stephen King

It’s funny, but the best teachers you get in life probably aren’t even aware that they’re helping you out. Or, maybe that old saying really is true that when the student is ready the teacher will appear. Except, maybe the teacher is totally unaware of what they’re doing.

Case in point: I just finished reading Stephen King’s new book, “Duma Key". But, already something is happening. For instance, in the book our hero, Edgar Freemantal, was once upon a time a very successful building contractor and is now a sad and mangled man. He caught the roughside of a large piece of construction machinery with no back up meep meeps going on to warn him that it was coming his way. Mashed him up pretty bad. Sort of rewired his head too. But, now his missing right arm itches like the dickens at times. Sometimes it burns. A hint of what the phantom limb experience might be that we’ve all heard about before. Except, here starts the Stephen King magic and where the best lies, loosely couched in truth, are my own personal lessons on how to be a better psychic.

What first thrilled me to see was the bit about how in the beginning of the burning, itching of the missing limb what relieved it was a stint at drawing and painting. Our hero comes away from these artistic rushes of madness absolutely ravenous. Same thing happened to me early on in my channeling days after a session. You couldn’t stop me I was that hungry. Now, I realize it was my own eating disorder rearing its head and providing me with a bit of comfort after a particularly strenuous and stressful experience. I remember hearing of other channels who spoke of this odd phenomena and routinely advised others who were channeling to have a glass of orange juice after a channeling session. There were also those who tried to explain away their own obese bodies on the same thing. I am not buying into any of that, but do remember there were times when I felt that ravenous hunger. Did I think it was a result of having the intense psychic energies flowing through my, as yet not accustomed to psychic energy body? Well, I did in the beginning, but I don’t now. Could have been any sort of new to me energy that would result in the ravenous raids on whatever wasn’t tied down in the kitchen. However, King picked up on it and I stand here pretty impressed that he did. It was just a small thing, but it was truth. I've just written a review of the book on my book blog.

I’m a fan of Stephen King, though I didn’t come to be until I was an adult. Up until then I had shied away from anything Stephen King had written or shown upon the silver screen. King? No way Jose. What happened so many years ago was I read, “The Stand”. Within the year I’d read mostly every novel he’d written up to that point. I’d also become psychic. I tell people I over-dosed on Stephen King books. But, that nice and tidy side effect aside, the man can write. I stand in awe of how he is able to reach out, grasp the points I would have normally missed, tossed it all around and come up with a good book.

He did it again.