“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(The 60th envelope experiment used as object a quick black line drawing, on porous white paper, that I made of a giant begonia plant at the office. The plant sits on a taboret beside my drawing table. It has grown beautifully from a tiny slip that I took to the office approximately last March. Jane has not seen the plant, hardly ever visiting the office.

(Nor had she ever seen the drawing used as object, nor did she even know it existed. We have the plant here in the apartment from which the slip came however, and its history will be given in the envelope data. I placed the object between the usual double Bristol and sealed it all up in the usual double envelopes.

Do you have an envelope for me?

(Jane paused at 10:29, and took the envelope for our 60th experiment from me without opening her eyes. She pressed it to her forehead with one hand.)

Do you have questions? (Jane changed hands on the envelope, but continued to hold it to her forehead.)

The four areas could be different in color, and fairly bright—perhaps also a pale blue. I do not know if this is a symbolic impression or not. (I would like to add that while making the above cross sign, Jane held the envelope with its long dimension also horizontal. This has a bearing on the data, we believe.

(See the tracing of the object on page 226, and the notes on page 227. Seth returns after break, briefly, but doesn’t add anything to our own connections with the envelope data.

(“Oval and brown.” The little sketch used as object shows but the top few leaves of the giant begonia. These show as oval. The interesting thing here is that the larger leaves of the plant at the office are now beginning to show definite brownish tones. As stated Jane has never seen the plant at the office in its fine growth—merely a slip from a parent plant here in the apartment. Since this house plant also is developing a brown cast, Jane could know this easily enough once she, or Seth, picked up the idea that the envelope object represented a begonia.

(“A salary or payment connection.” As I sit at my drawing board at the office, perhaps a foot or eighteen inches from the begonia plant which served as a model for the envelope object, I am given my paycheck each Friday afternoon.

(“Now, I have the impression that the object is roughly divided into four areas, in this manner, you see, with fairly dark lines.” See the notes with this data on page 230. Jane, while holding the envelope, and the object inside it, horizontally, made a vigorous crossing and vertical motion with an arm. See the tracing on page 226. The drawing shows that the leaves of the plant are climbing up a wooden stick. With the object held horizontally, the stick is also horizontal and divides the drawing in half easily enough; the horizontal attribute of her gesture was stressed by Jane. The fairly dark lines on the object are obvious.

(“The four areas could be different in color, and fairly bright—perhaps also a pale blue. I do not know if this is a symbolic impression or not.” The object itself is in black and white only. We offer a pale blue connection however that we have been aware of for several years. Miss Callahan, who gave Jane the parent begonia which led to the making of the envelope object, is inordinately fond of blue. We do not know if Seth would call this a symbolic connection. Miss Callahan’s apartment is largely blue. Her living room has pale blue painted walls, including a floor to ceiling painted blue bookcase. Her divan is covered with solid blue, as is a matching overstuffed chair. The other chair is of a blue printed pattern. The rug is a darkish violet and gray, close to a blue, etc.

(“I believe an older woman.” The third question sought to find out who the other woman was beside Jane. See the woman data on page 230. We think this answer reinforces our interpretations of the woman data, and the symbolic blue data just noted. Miss Callahan of course being considerably older than Jane—about 78, we believe. Again, Miss Callahan gave Jane the parent begonia which furnished eventually the office begonia; a drawing of the office begonia was used as the envelope object for tonight.

(I now made a comment: “That word monolithic is interesting.” Seth replied: “This is in connection with a drawing or design. And mono, also meaning one.” The envelope object is a drawing. See also the interpretation of monolithic on page 232.

(“He still does.” See the drawing of the envelope object used in the last session, on page 217. Today Jane told me the eagle still looked like a moose to her.)

(Reduced copy of pages 1 and 4 of the announcement used as object in the 61st envelope experiment, in the 268th session for June 15,1966.)

(Reduced copy of pages 2 and 3 of the announcement used as object in the 61st envelope experiment, in the 268th session for June 15,1966.)