From Spot

One of my favorite things to do is to talk with animals. Our pets are so hilarious! They have personalities, opinions, and preferences just like any normal person. There's a whole world of thought going on there that we usually aren't able to tap into. It's one of the reasons why I am a vegetarian; once you realize this being has opinions and feelings just like any person . . . okay, I think that's another post.

Most pets, when given the chance to talk, will tell me about their likes and dislikes. They often make food requests, give opinions about other animals in the house, and reveal their favorite walking spots. They are always funny! Their personalities range from high maintenance, to grouchy, to friendly, to hyper.

I remember one reading in particular where a dog was saying that he liked his water at a certain temperature: "colder than room temperature, but not as cold as when it first comes from the tap." No, it was not Paris Hilton's dog, either. Many dogs will tell me about what they consider the ranking in the house. Some family members, they consider lower than them (oftentimes, children are considered beneath them). It's also fascinating to ask them about the relationships with other pets in the house. I've seen many odd couple relationships, a few Lucy/Ricky or Lucy/Ethel relationships, and then some house pets try to pretend that the others don't exist!

More than anything, animals are extremely loyal. Their needs are simple (okay, except maybe for that dog with the water request), and their love is very clear.

H-E-Double Hockey Sticks

Often, I think I take for granted what might be understood about the afterlife, but a question from a client last weekend reminded me that even discussing the basics can be interesting.

I was helping a girl connect with a friend who had overdosed, and she point blank asked me, "Do you believe in hell?"

No, I do not. I have never seen any evidence for what images people conjure up for hell while doing readings. I haven't seen fire, suffering, anguish, torture, or any such things. The closest thing I've seen to hell is that some people who have committed suicide or done particularly deplorable things are in a kind of holding cell. They are not in the full light of heaven, and are in something like time-out or afterlife jail. In this space, they get visited by loved ones, angels, and guides, all who help the person heal. The help is loving, and the space is neutral and clear, not painful.

They seem to be held in this space because their life force is not in a fully loving, healed, and clear space for heaven. It seems that they need to spend time in solitude, thinking, ruminating, exploring their life and getting healing love from angels, guides, and friends before they can fully be welcomed into heaven. As for how long someone is in that space, I'm not sure. Time is not linear over there. Days? Weeks? Months? I'm not sure. But I know that the process is up to the individual and how quickly they want to learn, grow, and heal.

The best way you can help your loved ones who've passed on is to pray for them. When we have an intention for those passed on, the energy of our prayers actually affects their energy! They heal as we think of them.

From the Headlines

I believe the title says it all, no?

Clinically Dead Boy 'Saw Granny in Heaven'
April 8, 2010

A three-year-old boy brought back from the dead after his heart stopped beating for three hours has told how he saw his great-grandmother in Heaven.

Pick-Me-Up

I actually read this book a while ago, but while looking for good fodder for my blog came upon Randy Pausch's lecture on The Oprah Winfrey Show that aired in 2008 (I think).

One of my favorite quotes from his speech: "Brick walls are there for a reason. They are not there to keep us down. They are there go give us a way to show how much we want it."

I wish I could embed the video, but the best I can do is a link.

Watch Randy's lecture on Oprah.

The Wheel of Life

Many people have questions about past lives and about the idea of reincarnation in general. Why I hadn't thought of talking about this before, I have no idea! But I'll answer some of the most common questions here for all of you inquiring minds. Hopefully, it goes without saying, but just for good measure, all of my beliefs come from my own personal experiences doing readings for others and through my own spiritual growth through meditation and prayer.

"Believe nothing, no matter who says it, unless it agrees with your own reason." ~Siddhartha Buddha

Have we had other lifetimes on Earth?
Yes. Really, we have. 99.9% of us have done this Earth thing at least once.

How many times might someone come back?
For some, they've done this Earth thing as little as two or three times, and for others, it's been hundreds of times! The amount of times we've been back doesn't seem to depend on how "old" our soul is, but on how often we choose to come back.

Is there such a thing as an old soul?
Well, your soul could be "old", meaning it has been a long time since your soul's inception; but that doesn't necessarily mean that you are a wise soul. An old soul could be stubborn and slow to learn and evolve. "Old" does not always mean wise, and "young" does not always mean stupid.

Do we always come back as the same gender?
Not usually. Most people have been male, female, black, white, rich, poor, you name it, at least once. It seems that the point of this is so that we are able to realize the equality of all human beings, the importance of respect for life, and to learn empathy for all souls.

Do we get to pick our life (i.e. our parents, the time period, the place, etc.)?
Yes and no. We are not able to say something like, "Okay, I want to be Madonna's daughter." But we do have something like 3 to 5 choices to make for parents and general life work. Then, with our angels and guides, we choose the life that we think would be best for our soul's progression at this time. So yes, we usually consciously choose at least one of our parents as well as a general structure to our life.

But I hate my mom/dad/brother/cat/job/husband/life! Why would I have chosen him/her/it?
Sometimes, we pick people and situations that will teach us a lesson we need to learn. Other times, we are trying to mend the hurt from the past with a current relationship. In other cases, we are trying to help another soul. The intentions are always for a greater good, but making them come to fruition can be difficult at times.

Do we have to come back?
Well, no, we don't have to. No one forces us. Free will dictates the law of the universe, and angels, guides, and even God cannot force us to do anything. Every lesson we learn, every accomplishment, and every forward progression of our soul only happens with our permission. If you don't want to come back, no one makes you do it; however, it is in the best interest of your soul to come back if you have lessons you need to learn that could be learned on Earth. So no one forces us, but at our purest we are beings who desire to evolve, and so we will choose to come back.

E.T. Phone Home

While I consider myself under a certain umbrella of paranormal philosophies and unconventional wisdom, many people also consider my gifts to be a good avenue to explore questions about extraterrestrial life. As with most things I've learned and shared on this blog, all of my insights come from readings that I have done, not any books, authors, or philosophies I've heard of and buy (or don't buy) into. But since it seems to come up, I'll offer my two cents in the mix. Sincerely, I mean it when I say "two cents;" I do not consider myself an authority or expert on any subject! I am trying to learn as much as I can and want to share what I have picked up.

My first encounter with the idea of life forms that are not of Earth came through a reading with a girl last fall. She said that she wanted to know why she was "having such a hard time in life." I was tempted to ask her to clarify what that meant, but instead I just asked that question and waited for a response. What I saw with my third eye was that she had spent at least one lifetime on at least one other planet and actually hadn't been to Earth much at all. The reality here on Earth was very different than the reality on this other planet, and it was a hard adjustment for her; however, part of her lesson here involved having compassion and understanding for all life forms in the universe, so taking a trip to Earth was part of the package.

I have to admit that before this reading, I hadn't explored the idea that much at all. Truthfully, I don't think I was ready for such ideas, but my reading with her got me thinking. These are the truths that I have arrived at through readings and contemplation.

#1 It is certainly possible that other planets exist which can harbor life forms.
Within this huge, expansive, unfathomable universe, there is more space and time than I think our tiny brains can comprehend. Our technology has only scratched the surface of possibilities.

#2 Our souls need to learn many lessons, and it's possible that some lessons would be learned better in an environment different than Earth.
From my reading with this girl in the fall, and in subsequent readings since, it seems that we are put in different scenarios that will speed up the progression of our soul. For example, if we need to learn about communication, we may be born with a condition that makes communication difficult. Therefore, it seems that by being on a different planet we are able to work on different parts of ourselves and it helps our understanding of the universe.

#3 At the end of the day, a soul is a soul. In a human body, in an animal body, within a Saint or within a serial killer, the core of each being is a soul or a spirit. So why couldn't a soul inhabit a body that was on a different planet than Earth?
It seems entirely possible and probable.

What's going on over there?

Many times, when I am helping someone connect with a late loved one, the question is, "What are they doing over there?" Just recently, a client was curious to know if their loved one could see everything about their life, past, present, and future.

You'll be relieved to know that they don't have unlimited access to our lives. After the moment of passing, it seems that they can hear our thoughts and follow us around; but they don't seem to have the ability to go back in time so to speak and pry on our pasts. So don't worry, Aunt Millie doesn't know about your wild college days, and Grandma Pearl doesn't know who your first kiss was . . . unless of course, you think about it and she happens to be checking in on you . . . . quick! Think of a purple elephant! 8 times 2 is . . .

Mind Trap

At the end of each meditation session, I always ask my angels and guides what they want me to work on. I have that whole transcendentalist philosophy of living where I am always striving for self-improvement. Maybe in a former life I was shooting the breeze with Ben Franklin?

In at least 5 different ways, their message is always the same: expand your thinking. Be open to possibilities. One way I was shown this is that I was standing on the beach with Moses while he pointed to the ocean. The ocean was meant to represent the infinite possibilities of life. Then, he showed me my own view, and instead of a vast ocean, it was a small stream.

In another meditation, an angel guided me to a beautiful view of mountains, valleys, and lakes. We stood there taking in the scenery, but then the angel put a kind of telescope in front of me, limiting my view to just one mountain peak and a touch of grass. The angel's point was that the smaller view was how I was looking at my life, when in actuality there was much more to see.

And so here is my conundrum. For someone who likes to plan and is very practical, how can I open my mind to what I cannot conceive? Blind faith and trust. And it makes me wonder, what exists for me in that big ocean, or beyond that telescope view, that I am not allowing to come forward? The possibilities are really endless.

"The Intuitive Advisor" by Mona Lisa Schulz

What a great find. I had heard of this author while volunteering at Equilibrium, and after a whoopsie between Bernadette, a rainy night, and a fickle car trunk, I became the owner of my very own slightly-water-damaged copy. Thank you God for the rain! Because this has climbed to the top of my list of great reads.

If you're familiar with the work of Louise Hay and other authors who talk about the connection between the mind and the body, you will love Mona Lisa Schulz. As a medical doctor and medical intuitive, she helps us understand the connection between our feelings about our life and our medical issues, chakra by chakra. It's very easy to understand and enlightening at the same time. For anyone struggling with medical issues, this is a must read.

Egads

Wow. My last post was in March. The self-discipline for the blog is a little lacking, huh.