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Notes from America with Kai Wright

How the Dead Still Speak to Us

Notes from America with Kai Wright

WNYC Studios

News Commentary, Politics, History, News

4.41.5K Ratings

🗓️ 1 November 2021

⏱️ 60 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This Halloween, we reveal the holiday’s often untold history and why connecting to the dead is important to so many people, from Ireland, to Mexico, to NYC. What about this time of year lowers the veil between the living and the dead, and what does this universal desire to connect with those who’ve passed teach us about ourselves? Plus, make sure to listen to the end for a conversation with award-winning psychic medium Betsy LeFae, host of the podcast Trust Yourself. She leads Kai through a guided meditation that can help you connect, too. Companion listening for this episode: Collective Loss, Collective Care (3/15/2021) More than half a million Americans - our family, friends, neighbors, loved ones - have lost their lives to the virus over the past year and our collective grief continues to compound. But communities have come together in remarkable ways to take care of each other. “The United States of Anxiety” airs live on Sunday evenings at 6pm ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts. To catch all the action, tune into the show on Sunday nights via the stream on WNYC.org/anxiety or tell your smart speakers to play WNYC. We want to hear from you! Connect with us on Twitter @WNYC using the hashtag #USofAnxiety or email us at anxiety@wnyc.org.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hey Regina, hi Guy. So it's Halloween night and you are a huge fan as I understand it. What do you love about this holiday?

0:08.0

Yeah, I have always loved Halloween. I think as I've gotten older, it's changed from being a fun time to dress up and go out, to being more of a time to think about and be scared of and I don't know just have fun with the dead and there's something about

0:25.5

this time of year and the veil being down between the living and the dead and other

0:30.5

people also thinking in the space that excites me. I was wondering,

0:35.3

what is the history of Halloween? What about this time of year? Makes people all

0:40.2

around the world think about the dead. I thought it would be fun to speak

0:44.3

with historians and even speak with a psychic medium who is in this space all

0:50.2

year round so I think it will be a fun conversation I cannot wake so that's

0:54.5

tonight's show the sometimes hidden history of Halloween and how we commune with

0:58.5

the dead.

1:08.8

This Halloween, we're asking people about their relationship to those who have passed. What does Halloween signify for you?

1:11.4

I'm from New York, so I know the Halloween celebration is crazy but at the same time

1:16.0

it makes you think about people that have been here people that we've lost we were in

1:20.2

Paris once on November 1st and oh my God just hordes of people going to the local

1:26.0

cemeteries. It doesn't happen so much here.

1:29.0

What does relationship with the dad mean to you?

1:31.5

I speak with my mother and my father quite frequently. I know they're always there with me.

1:37.0

Cooking a recipe that my mom did or something that my dad enjoyed watching over me,

1:43.8

maybe assurance that I'm on the right path.

1:47.1

Neither one of us are not really very religious people,

1:49.9

but I've always felt somebody was on my shoulder

1:53.1

and it's a very palpable feeling.

...

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