The Psychic Weekend
When I typed the name of this chapter I smiled to myself. I'd told my friends and family I was going on a spiritual retreat over the weekend for fear they would think I had “really lost it”. To most, my yoga and my meditations are strange enough, but learning more about how to listen to “spirit world” might get me “Baker-acted“.
Quite honestly, the weekend with these world renowned psychics, mediums, and healers was very spiritual. We meditated frequently to raise our vibrations to facilitate communication with spirit world. So the retreat was spiritual in a deeper and different sense.
We were asked to arrive around 4 or 5pm. I was hoping to meet some of the people responsible for the actual property we were staying on, as it is an Intentional Living Community. I have had visions of creating a community of like-minded people on my mountain property in Georgia.
I drove into the parking lot and the first person I met was Larry, the caretaker for the weekend at Earthlands.
He was a tall, thin, grey-haired, attractive man who radiated a field of vibrant energy. I felt he was a well educated and well traveled man who loved the land. We walked and talked through the gardens and I learned more about what he was helping to create here, in the magnificent mountains of western Massachusetts.
The “intent” of this “Earthlands” community is to help people decrease the size of their “footprint” on this earth. He explained to me, the average American destroys approximately 25 acres of “rainforest” throughout their lifetime with their excessive use of fossil fuels, plastics, and lack of knowledge of how important their actions really are. I am always telling people we are part of the problem or part of the solution and at Earthlands, they are helping educate people on how to be “part of the solution“. Recycling, composting, using solar energy, and growing their own foods are just a few of the practices they are using to help save the earth. They have approximately 85 members who pay a fee to be part of the community and anyone can stay there for free if they work a couple of hours in the gardens.
I also learned the University of the Wild is made up dozens of graduate aged students who are dedicated to conservation in it’s truest sense. I was looking forward to the next few days, not only for the psychic experiences I would be taking part of, but to absorb as much as I could of the “Green Scene” they have so successfully created.
Dawn was the second person I met. She was very excited about the upcoming weekend and helped me explore the lodge where we would all be staying. She graciously took me to the 3rd floor and invited me to share her room with her, hoping no one else would discover the top floor as she knew, from past experiences, it would be difficult for her to rest if anyone else were in the room. She eventually found a private room available on the 2nd floor so I had the room to myself. It was perfect for my morning devotions and I was very, very comfortable on my mattress on the floor.
People began to arrive and the level of excitement was obvious. A couple of the attendees had been part of workshops Steve Hermann, our psychic-medium-teacher, had conducted here in the past.
Everyone I spoke with had wonderful stories they loved sharing about the miraculous events they’d had with spirit world. I was the only attendee, of the 13 people there, who didn’t profess to “see” spirits relatively regularly.
Rick, whose profession is paranormal investigations and psychic readings, was the 2nd person whom I spoke to at length. I purchased his DVD called “14 degrees” and looked forward to watching it when I got back to “civilization”. I knew I would learn much from this kind and gentle man.
When Steve and his lovely family arrived we helped carry in the groceries so we could “get on” with our studies. We ate a delicious meal prepared by Shrada, Steve’s wife, and gathered in the meditation room for our first session.
Steve spoke for awhile about the history of psychics and mediumship. Apparently, the churches of the world frown on the idea we can communicate with the “other dimension”. It is difficult for me to understand why people are so close minded to the possibilities. I have often felt a “gut instinct” and have often told people the “voices in their head are not their own”.
He also explained what types of exercises we would be doing and the hard work we had “signed up for“. He told us we should eat well and drink lots of water as psychic work was grueling. He also recommended we not consume caffeine, alcohol or unhealthy foods while there as energy flows much more easily in a healthy atmosphere. I was glad I had done a cleanse for the past couple of weeks in preparation for this weekend.
We’d put our chairs in a horseshoe shaped circle and before we started working with energy, Steve asked us to sit male, female, male, so I got up and sat between the 2 men on my left to balance the energy flow. We stood and held hands, as requested, left hand facing up and right hand facing down. He was right to correct us, as most men had put their hands on top. We said a prayer, focusing on the words of the prayer and the clockwise rotation of the energy flow. I could feel the heat coming out of my left hand more than I could feel the heat coming in through my right hand, but there was no doubt in my mind the energy was there and it was flowing.
We introduced ourselves and told the group what had brought us here. I was very honest about the fact I had never done anything like this before, but I knew spirit world was trying to talk to me all the time through miraculous “signs” throughout my life, especially the past few years since I had begun teaching yoga and Qi gong.
I didn’t say anything about the death of my husband, I didn’t want to “feed” the mediums in the room. I was approaching this weekend with an attitude of healthy skepticism and I wanted them to tell me what had happened in my life.
After we were done telling everyone a little about ourselves we were invited to say anything that came to mind about the other people in the circle by first asking the person’s permission and then speaking. Kerry stood up, asked if she could come to me and after I gave her permission she said she saw my aura as being large and filled with love, I had so much love to give to others. I smiled and thanked her. I’ve been told by many people throughout my life the same things, some who knew me and some who didn’t, some who read auras and some who did not. I acknowledged she was right and thanked her for her words.
Rick said when I spoke he immediately “saw” a butterfly. I thanked him and didn’t divulge the fact that Red, my deceased soul mate, had come through my psychic friend on the Suwannee and said whenever I saw a butterfly to remember I would always be his butterfly, flitting around bringing happiness to everyone.
Dave stood and looked at me and said a young man who had died recently by the name of Patrick was telling me, “It’s your turn to carry the torch and tell people what they need to hear”. At the time he told me I didn’t recognize of whom he was speaking but later that night, when Rick laid his hands on my shoulders to start his healing on me, our friend Patrick popped into my head immediately. The last time I had seen him was in Key West and I tried to tell him he needed to get a hold of himself and his addictions. After the loss of his girlfriend he couldn‘t control himself and within a month he took his own life. He was the one who had given Red and I the name “Rock and Roll’s most beautiful couple”.
As I write this I am sorry I didn’t take notes that night because I have truly forgotten much of what was said and done. The history was fascinating and I was delighted to learn spirit world’s main purpose for coming through to this world is to bring us closer to God, to our own enlightenment.
I was also happy to be between Mike and Rick as I felt I would learn a lot from both of them. I had met Rick earlier and was fascinated by his gentle demeanor as he was a very tall man and I find most men with grand stature can be very domineering. I was also intrigued with Mike’s energy as it seemed to me to be very “Native American oriented” and I have felt, and been told by many psychics, I carry Indians in my “space“ who are always trying to help me. I later found Mike not only had Native Americans helping him, but in trance he would speak in their language which he had never studied. He didn’t always know what he was saying but was able to translate his sentences into English quite well.
When we were done we all stood and said a closing prayer, thanking spirit world for bringing us all together to help us to know God more closely with their guidance.
I slept relatively well the first night. I had just had a couple of sleepless nights at my sister’s and the quiet of the mountains was a welcome change. Not that my sister’s was noisy, but the television and the energy of her community was a bit “busy“. Here there was just peace and quiet.
I was happy we were not on a tight schedule. Our first work session for Saturday was not until 9am leaving me plenty of time for extra long devotions in my beautiful east room and tea and breakfast at my leisure. We were instructed to bring our chairs and our art supplies outside for the morning’s activities.
We began with our prayer, as we did every session, and Steve passed cards out to each of us, laid face down, for an exercise in listening to what spirit world wanted us to say. We were to hold them and say the first words which came into our mind. My card said Friendship and the words I felt spirit world wanted me to say were, “Important, unconditional love, heart warming, special” and I think I said a few more things, but, once again, I do not remember everything I said. For me it is strange not to remember things exactly because I generally am the one who can tell you exactly what was said and who said it. It makes me think perhaps I truly was picking up on spirit, getting the “me” out of medium and pushing my “ego” out of the way.
When it was time for the girl to speak who was sitting exactly across from me and I heard her word was “Soul mate,” I smiled and realized how much she looked like the girl who sat across from me during the séance I had attended at Steve’s home in Alachua. The girl at the séance was the girl who Steve had seen a fiddle player in her aura, an extraordinary entertainer with a huge smile. Yes, that was Red coming through and here he was again, coming through telling me he was my soul mate.
After we all projected the words which had come to mind we were asked if anyone wanted to share what they had “seen” in their mind’s eye as each person had spoken. Renee said she had clearly seen a butterfly when Dawn had spoken. Dawn was the girl sitting across from me with the soul mate card had spoken. There was no question in my mind it was Red coming through for me.
Then we were told to pair up and “read” our partners and what we “heard or saw” with significance to the card we had just spoken about.
Rick held my hands and began talking about someone on the railroad who tried to guide through me (that could be my father-in-law from my first marriage) and that someone with a big smile was giving me a birthday cake (that could be my husband-my birthday had been a couple of weeks ago). He also heard chamber music (which I believe could have been referring to the beautiful music my late husband had written, but I forgot to tell him that) and that there were 2 older women trying to help me with a broken friendship. This saddened me a little because I had recently been a “little too honest” with a couple of long time girlfriends who must have been offended by my words as they have not returned my phone calls or emails. I believe everything happens for a reason so I do not dwell on the loss of their intermittent companionship. I simply acknowledge the fact I did not need their negative, draining energies in my life any longer and remember the fun we had when we were friends.
Then it was my turn. I took a deep breath and tried to get my ego out of the way. I told Rick I thought I could see dolphins and he was on a boat. In my mind’s eye he was smiling, which I noticed he didn’t do very often. His card had been Serenity and I believed I saw him going on a journey to being serene. He thanked me and told me he hoped I was right. He later told the group I was expressing things he wanted to come into his life. I apologized to him for not seeing more but I knew I could not make things up with this crowd, they would be able to “see right through a lie”.
Before we broke for lunch Steve gave us a name of a person in his life. We were to tell him, when we got back together for the afternoon session, who that person was, whether he was in this physical plane or whether he had moved on to the next dimension and what he was to Steve. My first thought was he had died of cancer but I didn’t write that down, everyone these days was dying of cancer and I figured I probably didn’t have the capabilities of “knowing” anyway. Before we left the room Harry came over to me and said, your husband came through and asked me to tell you, ‘It is time to move on‘. I said I had been trying to, but that it was not easy. He said, “Of course it is, just do it”.
I went downstairs and walked outside on the deck to have myself a good cry. I had been crying a lot the 2 weeks before I left home and after his statement about my moving on I needed to be alone for awhile. As I sat in the chair it started to drizzle and a huge butterfly flew from below the deck directly in front of me and up over my head. Yes, Red, I heard the man and I really am trying to move on, it’s just that you were my soul mate and I miss you. Remember, I am that woman with a lot of love to give.
Lunch was wonderful, our meals were all vegan and incredibly delicious. The food was not the only delicious thing about meals, the conversations we had were inspirational and filled me with love and belief. Learning how and when each person had discovered their psychic capabilities was fascinating. Most of the people present had been “seeing things” from a very young age. Many of them came from families where it was accepted and encouraged and some of their parents had done and still did readings for a living.
We came together for our afternoon work group and everyone got a chance to tell Steve who we thought his friend was. Many of us believed he was a teacher, and he was. Many of us believed he was still here in the physical world and that was what I ended up writing down. It turned out, the man had died of cancer, and I wished I had gone with my first intuition.
The afternoon session was more of the same except we were encouraged to pair off with someone we had not worked with yet.
Harry asked to work with me and I consented, wondering what it was he wanted to say. He held my hands and told me he hated to bring this up but that the abuse I had suffered was clouding my progress now. He said I had to let that all go and work on being safe. Yes, there had been a lot of abuse throughout my adult lifetime, mostly verbal and I had already decided not to allow abuse of any kind to come into my life ever again.
When it was my turn to read him I told him I could see an African woman with lots of rings around her neck helping him throughout his life. I kept hearing the words, don’t worry anymore, don’t worry. He, at first, was not receptive to my reading and that blocked me completely. I was embarrassed enough at my lack of ability compared to the rest of the group. I had a great deal of difficulty seeing or hearing anything, especially during the group sessions. I often wondered why I was there but I truly felt it was to bring my healing to another level. Not only my own healing but helping others heal.
After we went back to our own seats, Mike, the man who sat to my right when in circle, leaned forward and quietly said to me he had also seen an African woman with Harry the previous day while they were working in the medicine wheel. I thanked him and told him I was glad he had said something as it made me feel more competent with my abilities. He told me I had made him feel better by seeing the same things he had. Communication is so important.
We went downstairs for dinner and, once again, enjoyed each others’ conversations and the great, healthy food. The temperature was cool but the company was warm and wonderful. After dinner we walked to the caves we had heard about, they were much smaller than we had imagined, and their floors had several feet of water, but they were obviously very, very old (dating back to 4300 BC) and I was glad we had visited them.
When we gathered for our evening session we were asked to put a personal item in a bowl, not allowing anyone else to see what it was and then we each pulled an item out. We were to feel the energy and tell the group what we felt.
The first one to speak was Renee and she had pulled out my pendant. Now, I had kept the pendant hidden under my shirt, so no one had seen me wearing it, and when she started to speak it was obvious she knew where the owner of the pendant had been.
She said, “I see paths in the woods, I am walking and walking and I can’t find the house. I see waterfalls and more trees. I see a man with a smile from ear to ear and he is glad the owner of this pendant is here”.
Yes, I knew Red was very glad I was here. This was something I was never allowed to do when he was alive and now that he was gone, I planned on doing more retreats for things I was interested in.
After our session we all sat and talked in the living room for awhile.
I felt something calling me outside so I went out to look at the stars. As I walked down the stairs and out towards the gardens I could hear Rick and Beth say, “Did you see that? Did you see that? I wish we had another flashlight, we could go investigate.”
“I have a flashlight, it isn’t very bright. Where are we going?” I asked.
“Down toward the medicine wheel” they excitedly told me. “We just saw 2 figures in tan clothing and then a flash of pink light at the end of the path”, they were both obviously excited and we started down towards where the flash of light and the figures had been seen. I knew these 2 saw figures from spirit world so clearly they probably would not know the difference between people walking in this physical plane or spirits form another dimension visiting us.
“Pink is the color of divine love” exclaimed Beth as we walked closer to the medicine wheel. “Can you see them? Can you feel them?”
The closer we got to the medicine wheel the more electric I began to feel. I could not see what they were seeing but I certainly could feel the energy they were giving off-I had goose bumps from head to toe and my heart was racing. I REALLY felt the presence of beings from another dimension walking around the medicine wheel. They were most likely performing a ritual for the summer solstice.
We were joined by Harry, Iris, Kerry and Dave and they all felt the energy too. Beth stopped anyone who tried to enter the wheel. She told me later she felt she was rude and asked me why I thought she had been so bold to tell them they could not enter. I told her, “Out of respect, of course”. She said, “That makes sense”.
Rick raised his voice and asked spirit world to, “Give us a sign” that it was ok to be here. As soon as he spoke the words the most beautiful, green meteor traveled across the sky from the east to the west, more slowly than any shooting star we had ever seen. We all gasped in awe at this incredulous answer of approval.
We stayed for awhile, soaking in the energy of these beautiful, Native Americans and then it was just getting too late to stay any longer. I felt as though I were going to fall asleep standing there, so I started up the path towards the lodge with the rest of the group slowly following. We sat in the living room for a little while and shared more stories of things we had experienced, not only during this retreat, but in this lifetime. I went upstairs and laid down thinking of all the wonderful feelings I had felt and things I had learned. I was, indeed, very glad I had attended this mediumship retreat in the mountains of Massachusetts.
The morning brought clouds and the threat of rain as we gathered for our final session. We chatted for awhile about things which had happened throughout the weekend and Rick reiterated the story of our encounter with spirit last night. He was telling everyone, “I looked up to the heavens and asked spirit world to ‘Give us a sign’”. Just as he said that to the group, the wind blew through the window and a folding wall which had been standing since we had arrived crashed over into the bunk bed beside it. We all recognized the significance of timing.
Steve asked everyone if we knew which profession produced the most mediums. Some guessed doctor, nurse, social worker and Rick and Dawn declined to answer as they already knew. “Hairdresser”, Steve told us and continued, “They have their hands in their clients’ aura, on and around their crown chakra, listening to them and talking to them about their lives filled with trials and tribulations“. It seemed a very natural conclusion. That was the profession of my psychic-friend, Christopher, back home on the Suwannee.
I was truly looking forward to this final exercise, learning how to work with our spirit guides while healing. We were asked to pair up with someone we had not worked with and I walked over to Sigrung and asked permission to work with her. I knew she had buried her husband just 2 days before she arrived here and I believed I could help her through this period with the loving healing I would give her.
I sat in the chair first and she stood behind me. We were told to take a few deep breaths and to give our spirit guides permission to step into our bodies and to allow them to lead us through the healing. She began and as she worked I could feel an intense heat coming from her hands and then a sharp pain in my left side when it was released. I realize as I am writing this, 2 days after that healing, that I have not sobbed once since she worked on me. I believe she and her guide helped me “move on”.
When the first people doing their healings was finished, Steve asked Sigrum first what she felt. She said very little through out the weekend and now she said simply, in her lovely Icelandic accent, “When I am doing my healing I am so focused on what I am doing I can’t tell you much. I think my Norse doctor was aiding me but that is all”.
Everyone else gave their impressions on what they felt and who they believed were working through them. It was wonderful to hear everyone expressing themselves so openly.
Now it was my turn to work on Sigrung. I took a few deep breaths and felt trancelike while I asked my spirit guides to step in and take over. I felt as though one of my Indian spirits stepped in and guided my hands over her body. Whenever I do a healing I don’t normally touch the person, I simply guide my hands over their body, cleansing any negative energy and imagining the healing white light coming from the heavens, through my heart chakra and out through the center of my hands. For some reason, the guides wanted me to touch her back and her front, ever so gently, and I felt as though she was warming under my touch.
When we were finished we were told to ask the guides to step back and to slowly come back into this physical world. I always feel wonderful after working on someone and this time I was very warm and calm and “smiling all over”.
Steve asked who would like to start and Dawn held up her hand and when acknowledged by Steve, began to talk. Sigrung interrupted her and said, “I would like to say something”.
Steve laughed and said, “She doesn’t say much but when she feels strongly about something, she speaks right up”.
She looked at the group and she looked at me while she was saying, “I felt an Indian guide step into my aura. I am not sure whether it is one of Diane’s guides or whether he was just one of the spirits here this weekend but their energies worked very well together. The healing was very powerful. I never knew a gentle touch could be so strong in healing. Diane, thank you so much for that deep healing”.
Steve said, “Diane carries Indian guides with her all the time. We just hope they aren’t on the warpath”. I smiled when I thought of how I felt when I went “on the warpath”, sometimes I find it hard to control the words coming out of my mouth. He also added, “just be sure to put me in your book”. That was the first reference anyone had made to my writing. I smiled and thought, “Oh yes, Steve, you already are in my book”.
Each person in the room discussed their feelings while I tried to listen but felt compelled to silently thank The Universe for bringing me here and especially for encouraging me to ask Sigrung’s permission to work with her. I respected this woman greatly and to have her say I’d done a powerful healing was the greatest gift I could have received. This compliment, coming from a world renowned psychic healer was a tremendous validation for me. I AM a healer-well, I am a vessel for The UNIVERSE'S healing energy.
When we were finished we sat back in our circle and expressed our gratitude to The Divine. We stood for our final prayer and sang, “I am, I am, I am” to the tune of Amazing Grace, and then, for the second verse, “We are, we are, we are” to the same tune. It was hard to hold back the tears of joy for the opportunity to share this experience with such a wonderful group of people. Rick said he felt this was one of the most balanced and beautiful groups he had ever worked with and prayed we would all return for the October weekend Steve was planning. I would definitely consider attending. Whether I ever see spirits was not important to me, I feel them and hear their messages loudly and clearly. Being able to spend time with like minded people was fulfilling beyond words. Besides, the first weekend in October may be a nice time to see some fall colors. I hope to return.