I LOVE to read. I mean, I think I was born with my wee head in a tiny book. I enjoy reading primarily chick lit (Bridget Jones—can’t dig her enough!), biographies, psychology, and spirituality. It only made sense that when my spiritual path was murky, at the age of 24, that I turn to my trusty books to help me find my way. This was eons ago, way before life coaches abounded. I was on my own to discover what my spiritual practice would look like as an adult since the internet didn’t even exist. Yes, I am that old. Hahaha!

I was raised Christian on a kind of generic flavor called Christian Union found only in the Midwest. We lacked fire and brimstone, and homosexuality and abortion were never discussed, that I recall. I just remember reading the Bible and not paying much attention at all to the weekly sermons because a friend and I skipped out to the nursery to play with the babies. Like one does at an early age, I followed along blindly, never thinking much about any of it. It just seemed all good by  me! Until I began to think about what all it entailed….for more on that part of my spiritual path, read https://laughingsoul.org/2018/01/12/why-choose-a-spiritual-path/.

As I perused the selection at the library, A Return to Love appealed to me because I was very vaguely aware of A Course in Miracles. I shrugged and thought, well, why the hell not read it? I am so glad I did. It opened my mind to a whole different way of considering the world, one that made so much more sense to me than the way I had been raised. It isn’t about a religion per se, but rather a framework with which to view life and how to live it. The main ideas in it are that we are all connected by a unifying force (God, Allah, Buddha, Fred, whatever name you choose to give it.) All of our unhappiness comes from fear, and aligning ourselves with a higher power/intelligence provides peace and comfort. Embracing these concepts were what I term a “brick thrown at the head” moment, where something clicks into my mind so powerfully and with such a vivid, strong sense of truth that it transforms my thoughts and actions permanently. Everything I learned felt right and led me to search for more of my own way. 

I ran into Many Lives, Many Masters by Dr. Brian Weiss around that time also. Reincarnation made sense to me. I couldn’t understand that if we only had one life in one body, why were some folks born into such horrific circumstances? That was just plain wrong, and certainly not the doings of a benevolent being. It clicked for me that we keep the same soul energy which only learns and grows over time as we occupy multiple bodies throughout many lifetimes. Trippy to consider, but it resonated. Dr. Weiss hypnotized a patient with severe anxiety and phobias out the wazoo. Much to his shock, her condition was resolved by recounting a total of 86 lives and discussing the traumas in them. Long story short, he continued studying past lives and how they affect us in our current incarnation, becoming a well-known author and speaker about the topic. His story introduced me to basic past life concepts and partially influenced my decision to become Buddhist.  https://www.amazon.com/Many-Lives-Masters-Prominent-Psychiatrist/dp/0671657860/ref=sr_1_1?crid=9JAQIAXEFIHU&keywords=many+lives+many+masters+by+brian+weiss&qid=1638475905&sprefix=Many+Lives,aps,177&sr=8-1

The one that most dramatically altered my entire life was The Psychic Pathway by Sonia Choquette. Hokey smokes! I didn’t find this until I was in my 30’s and seeking to open my psychic abilities. I had no idea where the road would take me, but I knew I had to start walking it. Its pages contained the bare bones basics of everything I needed to know to safely and confidently develop my abilities. I just knew I could read energy and offer psychic readings, but I had no idea how to do it. So I moseyed myself to a local psychic and asked her advice. She shared a few ideas and suggested reading this. The rest, as they say, is history. I have been a professional psychic medium since 2007, and I use this book to teach my own students now.  https://www.amazon.com/Psychic-Pathway-Workbook-Reawakening-Voice/dp/0517884070/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2Z5PUFBV4CZ6F&keywords=the+psychic+pathway&qid=1638476519&sprefix=The+Psychic+Pathway,aps,175&sr=8-1

If you would like a guide to facilitate the creation of your own spiritual path, I would love to partner with you! It can be difficult to navigate the road from how you were raised to what works for you now. It is actually a process that you may undertake even more than once as an adult. I forged my own way and have helped other clients do that too. There is no time like the present to begin your own spiritual journey.