Thea Alexander - 2150 A.D.

As I sat down in my hard-backed chair Karl put down my journal and asked what was wrong. When I told him of my experiences at the student union and at the supermarket, he smiled grimly and said, "Your new Macro powers don't seem to help you back here in 1976 the way they do in your 2150. Or maybe," he paused, and eyed me speculatively, "they don't even work in 1976."

That was our agreed-upon test of 2150's reality. Could I demonstrate Macro powers which I had learned in my dream world of the future while I was awake in 1976.

I had seen auras, but somehow I had forgotten-or avoided-trying telepathy with anyone.

Now I looked at my journal lying on the table beside Karl. Could I teleport it through the air over to me by using my newly developed PK? Maybe, I thought, I should try some smaller object. No, I refused to make the test easy-even if all I could do was push the journal off the table onto the floor, it would prove my PK.

I reached out with imaginary hands to lift the journal -nothing happened.

What's wrong? Had I just imagined seeing auras at the student union and the supermarket? Could it be that I would be unable to demonstrate PK, the one Macro power that could be seen by others?

I frantically reached out with my mind and redoubled my efforts to pull, push, or shove my journal off the table, but, to my growing alarm, there was no movement whatsoever.

"Take it easy," Karl said. "I can see by the look on your face that you aren't able to use your 2150 powers back here in the cold, hard reality of 1976."

"But I can see auras," I pleaded. "I can even see yours!"

"Come off it, Jon, you know I can't see auras and neither can you or anyone else we know, so offering your hallucinations is hardly going to be acceptable as proof."

"But, Karl," I protested, "this isn't a fair test-maybe I need more time. I mean I've only just begun using three out of the seven Macro powers. Maybe I'll have to practice and develop them all before I can demonstrate them successfully to you."

"There are only two," Karl replied, "which I would accept as being verifiable. That would be precognition and PK, with the latter being the quickest and best proof. It was you, Jon, who suggested the test of demonstrating them in 1976. Now you seem reluctant to accept your own test of reality."

"But I know I have the power! I used it time and again! You should have seen that tennis game, Karl."

"I know, I know," Karl replied. "It's all right there in your journal. The point is, that's in your dream world... not here in the reality where I live."

"I need more time, Karl," I repeated.

"Fine," Karl agreed. "I don't want to be unreasonable, but it's your test as much as mine. You set up the rules. I'm just the judge. If you want more time, take it."

Karl felt my disappointment and discouragement, and he realized that I was sincerely puzzled by my failure to move -the journal. In his attempt to help he asked me if I was doing something wrong; if I was, perhaps, leaving out some vital step in the process.

"No, no, no," I answered. "Damn it, Karl, I'm doing everything just like I did before. It's just not working!"

Karl laughed. "Look at me, you nut! I'm almost as wrapped up in this as you are!" He paced across the room with his chin in his hand then, turning and pointing his index finger at me, he said, "By George, I've got it! Let's recreate the 'scene of the crime' and see if we can ferret out your mistake. Now let's see, the first time you demonstrated PK was on that pebble when you and Carol took turns making it bounce along in front of you and..." Karl interrupted himself and plopped on his bed, weak with laughter. "I sure do feel stupid, Jon! I'm sure as hell glad one of our professors isn't here watching this production!"

At this prospect, we both broke up.

After a good laugh I said, "Come on now. Back to business. You had a good idea there. Let's get back to the first time I used PK."

"Well, as I was saying, you and Carol were taking turns bouncing-"

I interrupted. "No, Karl. That wasn't the first time I tried it. That was after I had learned the trick. The first time was when I tried to lift the pebble up from the ground in front of us. I couldn't do it. Carol told me to try to recall my last Macro contact experience. I did, and next time I tried, it worked."

Karl immediately asked, "That Macro contact stuff – do you think maybe that's it? Would that work here? And what is it?"

"What is it?" I tried to think of a way to describe it to Karl. "Well, the closest I can come to describing it would be if you paused for a moment and imagined yourself totally, and perfectly, molecularly, one with the air around you and with everything else. Just feel the air between the atoms that make up your body and know that all is perfect and all is one. I realize that's not too great a description, but it's the best I can do."

"I suppose we could call it getting into the Macro mood. One more 2150 expression can only enrich our lives!" Karl joked as he waved a finger in the air and "jived" around the room.

This business of combining the parts of two different worlds was more than I wanted to try to reason out, so I decided instead to act on it. "I don't know, Karl. Let me take the next few minutes to try it. You keep your eye on my journal because if this works, I'm going to teleport it from your table over to my chair."

Karl smiled and said, "If that's precognition you're going to have to also demonstrate PK in order to prove it.

His last words came to me faintly as my mind brought back vividly the memory of my last Macro contact, filling me with quiet, peaceful serenity. The fear and anxiety generated by my experience at the market and my failure to successfully demonstrate Macro powers for Karl began to be washed away by-an ocean-the wisdom of oneness-which dissolved them completely, filling me once again with joyous hope and loving acceptance.

I reached out with my mind's imaginary hands and gently lifted my journal a couple of inches straight up above the table.

"Son of a bitch!" Karl exclaimed. "You're doing it, Jon! By God, you're doing it!"

I lifted it a full two feet above the table and began to pull it toward me. A few seconds later, its journey from the table beside Karl over to my chair completed, it had traveled about nine feet and was now lying in my lap.

Karl exploded to his feet. Fighting back tears of joy and amazement, he grabbed my shoulders and shouted, "You did it, Jon! By God, you did it! Honest, Jon, – I thought you were losing your marbles-going out of your mind or something, believing those crazy dreams. But you sure did do it!"

"Are you finally convinced, Karl?" I asked grinning broadly.

Karl returned my grin and released my shoulders. As he stood up, though, the grin faded. "Wait a minute," he said, as he rubbed his chin in thought. "Maybe I'm seeing things, too, just because I want so badly to see them. I mean, maybe I want so strongly for you not to be losing your mind that I'll go to any extreme to prove you aren't. Maybe I'm hallucinating. Maybe that journal got over to you by some perfectly normal means that I, somehow, blocked out. Or maybe you hypnotized me-or maybe I hypnotized myself, Jon."

"Now it's your turn to have doubts about our test," I teased. "Maybe that bit about one of our professors seeing all this wasn't a bad idea. Do you want to invite some friends in for a little demonstration?"

"No, not really," Karl said, shaking his head. "If you failed, then everyone would know you're nuts and, being your brother, I'd be judged guilty by association. On the other hand, if you succeeded, you'd be as notorious as if you had suddenly grown two heads. Besides, you might still be accused of hypnotism. No, that's not the answer."

"Well, then, what do you suggest?" I asked. "I've kept my part of the bargain. I've demonstrated PK and even offered to do it again in front of witnesses. What more can I do?"