Can a professional “healer” really heal?

One positive result of being challenged with anxiety it has gotten me curious about “healers” and “alternative” methods that may lead to a better sense of well-being.

I am willing to be an “urban explorer”- to discover new ways of seeing the world and new ways to heal. So, when I heard about a man from Croatia who is said to heal people with his gaze, I had to find out more. The concept had me curious and a rather skeptical, so I drove to his event at a hotel in Broomfield, Colorado.

When I arrived at the hotel, I had no idea what to expect. The headliner’s name was Braco (pronounced BRAHTZO). If it were true that he was an authentic healer, I wanted others to know about him. Plus, it had the earmarks of a good urban adventure.

When I arrived at the venue, I paid ten dollars at the door. There were seats for about four hundred and they were filling up quickly. Soon after I sat down, a young woman took the stage and told stories about some of the people Braco had “healed”. She announced that he had helped people to conquer both physical and mental ailments with his gaze.

I looked around at the rest of the audience and noticed that many of the attendees were holding up photos of relatives and friends who, apparently, needed healing. According to my photo-holding seatmate, it was widely known that Braco’s healing powers worked even if the ailing person was absent.

The emcee introduced him as he slowly walked out onto center stage. He was a slender man of average height who appeared to be in his late forties. He had shoulder-length salt and pepper hair parted down the middle. His white long-sleeve shirt with ruffles down the front. His blue jeans were ironed and creased.

The audience fell silent while Braco stood on the stage and looked out at us. I tried to make eye contact with him so I could get the “full experience” (and my ten bucks worth). He did not say a word as he stood there and slowly swiveled his head from left to right, gazing out at the crowd. Many in attendance had tears streaming down their faces.

Twenty minutes passed. Braco walked away from center stage and disappeared behind heavy curtains, like the “Wizard of Oz”. I watched as people in the audience exited only to pay a second entry fee to get another gaze. I wondered if I had felt any healing energy.

I called my younger brother on my cell phone. I told him I had just paid ten bucks to watch a man look out at me, among others, for twenty minutes. As I was telling him about it, I could barely get the words out. We were both laughing at the absurdity of it all.

Often, when I tell this story to family and friends, they burst out laughing. My step-father laughed so hard that he was in tears. Everyone in the room looks happier after hearing the story.

It has been proven that laughter heals so to me, Braco is indeed a healer. I highly recommend these types of urban adventures. If we only make the effort to witness events that seem “plausible”, we will never know what is possible.