I watched the movie "Hereafter" again last night. I was impressed with how the director Clint Eastwood and writer Peter Morgan handled delicate topics like life after death, psychic gifts, love, family and addiction. They didn't add the usual sensationalism that often comes when these topics are portrayed in movies or the press. I was drawn to the power of that. This isn't a movie review, I'll let Roger Ebert handle that. It's a simple list of the elements I was happy to see in the movie that made it seem as real as everyday life.

Foster parents: How often are they portrayed like wicked step-mothers? Here they were shown as caring, experienced people dealing the best way they could with a difficult situation.

Twins: I am a twin so I know there is a close bond and often unspoken communication. It felt very real.

Addiction: The addicted mother wasn't some strung out zombie. She was a real loving mother, fighting with a terrible disease, loving and loved by her boys at a critical time in their lives. I appreciated the way the writer showed how the kids handled the disfunction, the way their guard went up when the mother came home and how it was let down again after she settled in. They walked on eggshells, aware that they were doing so, and willing to continue because of their love for her.

Psychics: Many people do develop psychic abilities after a bump on the head, or a stroke. Others like me have the tendencies in place from birth and work to develop them over the years. So often when someone wants to see a psychic, they expect hoop earrings, crystal balls and a bit of theatre. They seem to think that when a clairvoyant "sees" something it's like a video that is running in their head. But like the movie portrays, it is often a quick flashing image that is so quickly gone that it is up to the psychic to remember and describe what they perceived. The presence or connection between the psychic and passed loved one can fade away, or the loved one can need to leave before all that the client wants to hear has been said.

There were a few psychics shown in the movie aside from the main character, all who had their own approaches and all who were clearly not very good at what they did. They each had their own baggage they were bringing to the job and it affected their ability to excel. Like cooks or architects, some psychics are good and some not so good. I liked the clean and pure approach to the main character's psychic work. He was straight up with what he saw and made no assumptions. I feel that is the hallmark of a good psychic. Say what you see, feel, hear or "get," without adding anything extra. It was the same with his visions of the hereafter. He couldn't make any assumptions about where those who had passed were. He didn't build upon ideas of faith. He simply knew they were for real.

I also liked the way the psychic's brother was shown - someone who felt separated from the "gift" but eager to use this as a way to make a good living. The brother's belief that the psychic had a duty to do readings because he could is something that I find an interesting issue. I have often run into people who feel that if you have psychic talent you must give it away for free because it's a gift. The psychic in the movie didn't see it as a gift at all. He couldn't cope with "a life that is all about death." We, all of us, see or perceive things that others do not. We all know there are times to speak and times to be quiet about what we perceive. We all know that some questions don't have answers.

Hereafter: The psychic didn't make any assumptions about where those who had passed were. He said, "I don't know where they are, even with all those readings." He didn't build upon ideas of faith. He simply knew they were for real.

I enjoyed the movie in so many ways, but one of the main things I loved about it was how the writer and director handled the message of the hereafter - the message that we are not alone, that something continues after we die in a place that is light-filled. This is the same message we have heard from those who have had near-death experiences and from those who have had brain injuries that have opened access to seldom-used areas of perception in them. The message they tell us is the same as those in the movie. "You are not on your own." "You can be all things and all at once." Whatever I know or don't know about things psychic or spiritual or about the hereafter, I feel reassured and hopeful when I hear these messages.