It therefore came as something of a surprise when I got a phone call from ol' Ernie about three days later. His voice was faint, but recognizable, and he identified himself immediately by dredging up an old memory best left buried, as I'd assumed Ernie was. Constantly on the alert because of my intensive studies in this field, I responded at once with the first of the key questions researchers have designed to crack the mystery. He always hated the phone. I asked, as casually as I could.
Ambiguity is a comment element.
This sounds a bit more philosophical that I remember of ol' Ernie, but I leave it to Theologists to interpret. This certainly appeared to be the case with ol' Ernie, who spoke of nothing but a desire to borrow money. Knowing this, I was able to recognize ol' Ernie's repetitive litany of pleas for a loan as just the proof I needed to be sure it was Ernie. I must admit that this experience added nothing to our understanding of the afterlife, but it certainly firmed up my conviction that the dead can still carry on a conversation. It also underscores my growing conviction that these communications are usually less interesting than they ought to be.