TEA LEAF DREAMS AND CRYSTAL BALL REALITIES by Heather V., Weymouth, MA I twirled the smooth glass ball in my palm over and over again. The sunlight reflected off the round sphere gathering miniscule pools of color here and there. Finally, my grandmother's coveted crystal ball was mine.

As a small child I was always astounded by the number of phone calls that flooded the house when Grandma came to visit. People from all over the state (and even the country) would call, pleading with my grandmother to predict their future experiences with love, wealth and family. When my mother told me Grandma was psychic, I merely scoffed, drawing the conclusion that psychic powers were "made up."

I never realized the power of psychic intuition until the summer before fifth grade. My uncle Philip had come to visit from Michigan. He had followed in Grandma's footsteps and learned how to read tarot cards and tea leaves. In fact, he had his own tea room in Michigan. I was fascinated by his collection of precious stones. Although his stay was short, during that time he taught me many lessons about the psychic powers I possessed.

Then one summer night, I had a peculiar dream. I dreamt that my bed was situated on the lush lawn in my front yard. To the left of my bed rested my mother's gleaming gold watch. While I was in a deep slumber a mysterious figure crept stealthily to my bedside. I awoke just in time to see him snatch the watch. Startled, I cried out. The figure dropped the watch, leaving it to bake in the hot sun in the middle of the driveway.

The next morning, I awoke to find my mother tearing the house apart. She told me she couldn't find her watch. An eerie feeling crept over me as I remembered my dream. She ran to the phone and called my uncle. He told my mother to ask me where the figure had dropped the watch. When I told her it had been on the floor, she scoured every carpet in the house. While in the kitchen, she noticed some ripe fruit had spoiled. When she walked outside to the trash can in the driveway, something shiny on the asphalt caught her eye. There on the driveway was her watch in the exact spot it had been dropped in my dream! Chalk it up to coincidence if you like but, to this day, many members of my family believe it was the power of psychic intuition.

Today, as I glance around my room at the many fairies, angels and supernatural literature, I am reminded of my uncle and grandmother. Although they have since passed away, I have been given many of their belongings, including my uncle's tarot cards and my grandmother's crystal ball. I hope that, one day, I will be able to help people through the use of psychic power. I believe that everyone possesses psychic intuition. However, it is up to one's spirit whether or not they use it to their advantage.