But for routine communications, I relied on recordings. That was, until my father suggested I try using my iPod. (My father had become the main voice among my guides.) It took weeks to train my ears, but eventually by playing white noise on my iPod, I was able to hear his voice emerging from the static. So as I was hiking down the mountain I got out my iPod and asked how many spirits had crossed in the Eucalyptus grove. "6,665," he said.
"So, I guess 5,000 is not my limit," I said. "How many now do you think I'll be able to cross?"
"Maybe 20,000," he answered. That made me feel a little bit better about the task of crossing 600 million earthbound spirits. Now it should take me only about 100 years. (continued below...)