For those who are not mystically inclined, that may be a confusing statement. Others will understand that his body was elsewhere, but our souls had been deeply entwined through the night, thus my physical self was startled by his physical absence.

That’s how my life works.

There is the physical “reality” plane that can be explored with the five senses, and then there is the rest of my life. As I move deeper into the acceptance (not to be confused with understanding) of these other senses, I live more and more into the other reality. In doing so, I am experiencing more ease, joy, flow, and love in my life than ever before.

My home is a perfect example.

When I set out to find a new place to live, I knew it had to be near water. There is something about the flow of water that deepens my connection to my creative sources for writing and other art forms.

I looked at many places before I came here. The only reason I even looked at this place was the price was so low for something in this area. As soon as I walked in, I felt “home.” It was weeks before I discovered the creek that runs on two sides of my home.

The Divine is funny like that. At least, it is with me. We play together a lot. It wasn’t always that way.

I grew up with a very skewed sense of what people called God. God was irate, irrational, cruel, and constantly waiting for His creation to do something wrong so he could dole out punishment. As it turns out, that was just a projection of the people who introduced me.

Nonetheless, I spent many years trying to follow the rules, know what was expected, please other people, and basically ‘get it right’ in order to live a good life and not be punished.

That was a LOT of WORK!

And it never worked anyway.

Now I’m feeling my way through life, doing my best to follow the flow of Spirit in ease and joy. In my experience, ease and joy are key. Spirit is like happiness, it never shows up when I’m working at it, but it’s always around when I drop the “should’s” and “out to’s” and simply play with life.

I even tried to set a schedule for my days in order to be more productive. After all, self-employed people are “supposed to” be very motivated, driven, and goal-oriented in order to be successful. I’ve learned that is not always true.

The only thing I have to do is follow Spirit.

Game plan for success in two words: Follow Spirit.

That’s how I wound up in a beautiful home with lots of natural light, wood floors, fireplace, and gorgeous trees outside with water nearby. That’s how I furnished my whole home on a teensy little budget when I had nothing to start with. That’s how I had the funds available to take seven weeks off work after surgery just a few months after I moved in. That’s how I met my Sweetheart. That’s how you found me.

After all, Spirit knows all that we need, and exactly where it’s located.

Doesn’t it make sense that it’s easier to follow the one who knows than to run around trying to find it or create it ourselves?

When I’m wiling to listen, my entire life is Divinely Guided. What I need shows up at just the right time, in just the right place, in just the right way.

And, I’ve got to run. Spirit has a beautiful easel waiting for me at a very reasonable price. Seems there’s more art on the way!

I hope you have a Follow Spirit kind of day!

First of all, I’ll cover what I know to be true about Twin Flames.

One Soul, Two Bodies

Twin Flames come from a single soul that has split, in much the same way that physical identical twins come from a single embryo. The split occurs immediately after the soul comes into existence, just like that embryo. The similarities end there. The Twin Flame experience is quite literally of one soul having the benefit of experiencing life in two separate bodies, a “double your pleasure” route through the Universe, if you will. Generally, neither soul has a conscious connection with the other as they go their separate ways.

We All Have a Twin

The embryo identical twin model doesn’t hold up long with the Twin Flame experience, as few of us have a physical identical twin. Every single one of us has a Twin Flame out there somewhere. Each and every one of us has another complete us.

Twin Flames Unite

…and when they do, it is SPECTACULAR! They bridge gaps of age, race, and everything else that society holds as distinct differences, to bring the combined power of their mutual gifts, talents, passions, and life purpose to play when they join forces.

That’s the KEY! Twin Flames are the same soul, the same essence, the same everything. There is no discord in them, other than what they were trained to have in their humanness, and that quickly fades away in the light of their combined soul. Twin Flames are forces beyond that which can be reckoned with. They are a power unto themselves.

But, How Often Do They Unite?

I was taught that Twin Flames separate at creation, coming together once at the end of the cycle of lives to bring the huge gift of themselves to whatever space they inhabit at that time. I was taught it only happens once.

From what I have seen, my teachers were wrong.

I have a habit of looking into people’s eyes to see how long I’ve known them. I typically get numbers, usually in years, sometimes in generations. Most of my current soul group has been hanging around with me for 500 to 5,000 years. Some go back farther, but none much more than 12,000 or so years. Until now.

Recently, I looked into a young man’s eyes and just sat there, staring, as time slipped backward. I had never seen time so old. I had never met someone I had known for so long. And then, I had a completely new experience like none I’ve had before. I watched as we entered the space before time ever was. It was as though there was a hiccup, and we passed into a time before time.

Startled, to say the least, I paused our interaction to gather my wits and calm my nerves. What on earth could this mean?

Yes, it’s an article on Twin Flames.

I met my own Twin Flame.

We sat, mostly in silence, for over an hour as our soul reacquainted itself, looking into eyes that were hauntingly familiar.

The next day, we resumed the exercise and it was then that I realized at least part of my training was wrong.

I watched as his face shape-shifted around his eyes. I intuited that he was showing me many of the faces he had worn in our past lifetimes. But wait! This goes against all the teachings I’ve read. Questioning Source, I was shown a linear diagram that looked much like a strand of pearls, and knew that the narrow parts where were we had joined, the wide parts where we had gone our separate ways. Many, many, many lifetimes. Joining in one, separate in the next, joined in the next… As he watched, my face shape-shifted, showing him the faces I had worn in previous lifetimes.

This is not how I was told it worked. And yet, I know this is my truth.

Having the Twin Flame experience is quite magical for me. To have my thoughts, my heart, and my soul spoken aloud by another who logically knows nothing about me is an amazing experience. I am looking forward to the amazing things I’ve heard these relationships are capable of. Hooray!

Clairaudience – translates to Clear Audio – or very literally, clear hearing. I have experienced this two ways, one an external audible voice (I actually thought there was someone standing behind me the first time this happened), and the other clearly internal.  Both have similar characteristics. Neither sounds like something I would say and both bring messages that I have no prior knowledge of. Sometimes the only accurate term is that I am hearing a message from the Divine, my guides, or my higher self. To someone witnessing this, it typically looks like I’m talking to myself, but only carrying on one side of the conversation.

Claircognizance – Clear Knowing – Sometimes I just know stuff. Can’t explain it; it’s just there and I’ve been experiencing this long enough to trust it.

Clairescence – Clear Smelling – I’ve only had this happen once that I was completely aware of. I got a very clear aroma of something that could not possibly be in my home. I still don’t know what it meant (My guides are laughing. They do that a lot. Apparently, I’m not quite open enough to know what it meant, but they know I’m capable so they’re letting me work it out.)

Clairgustance – Clear Eating (taste) – I think I’m grateful that I have no recollection of ever experiencing this. It might be handy, though. Wouldn’t it be nice to taste chocolate without the calories? Maybe some really good, rich, dark chocolate…

Clairsentience – Clear Feeling – This one is my sometimes creepy Clair, when the feelings are anything but pleasant. Thankfully, most of the information I get is positive in nature, however, it doesn’t always work that way. Sometimes I get pains in my body, and when I sit with them I know they are not me, and then I realize who they belong to. It served me well when I made my living as a Massage Therapist; I would call the client I was perceiving pain from, and they would say, “I was just thinking of you!” I learned not to tell them what was hurting, because some people are simply freaked out by this.

Clairvoyance – Clear Seeing – Sometimes this term is used as an umbrella for all the Clairs, but I do believe it is its own ability. I have had profound experiences with this, but one of them is just funny. When gas prices were very high, I looked at a sign and was surprised to see the price of gas had dropped by more than a dollar. I could see it very clearly; nonetheless, I blinked my eyes, shook my head, and looked again. The real sign was then visible. I called a friend, who proceeded to tell all his friends the price of gas was coming down. Two weeks later, it was lower than ‘the sign that wasn’t there.’

When I was younger, clairvoyance came in the form of dreams at night. The is something significantly different about ‘texture’ of my clairvoyant dreams. One strange episode involved dreaming about a man from the time I was three years old until I met him when I was 19. A very disturbing dream in which a friend died in an accident led me to attempt to block my clairvoyance. It wasn’t that the dream was so terrible; she didn’t take me seriously and I didn’t want to know if I couldn’t change a bad outcome.

Have you had experience with the Clairs? I’d love for you to share in the comments below!

I have always known that I never wanted to have to think that hard. It certainly is not that I can’t; I was told at 16 that I had the ability to be a nuclear physicist. My reaction was complete horror; putting my body in a torture chamber would be preferable to putting my brain through those gyrations!

I am a high-functioning mystic. I live a both/and kind of life. I am highly gifted in both intelligence and intuitive abilities. As a mystic, I feel my way around in the world, not with my hands, but with a different set of senses. Much of what I do is based on things that science used to pooh-pooh, things like intuition, clairvoyance, clairaudience, clairsentience, and a few other Clairs. It’s not that I don’t use logic; I do, it just is a lot slower than using the intuitive side of me, so I don’t use it as much. It takes a very long time to find all the words to explain what I’m sensing, so I don’t bother most of the time. My son has much more patience with that process than I do. (He is also gifted intuitively, and finds it extremely helpful in directing his research.)

In my happy little head, Logic lives in the left brain with all the math, numbers, and structure, while Intuition lives in the right brain with all the creative, arts, and unstructure. (Speaking of creative, I think I just made up a word, a totally right-brain thing to do.)

The Clairs seem to gain access through the right side of my brain. I don’t think they really live in there, but my experience leads me to believe that the more I live in the right side of my brain, the more the Clairs come to play. The left side of my brain seems to be a real killjoy to the Clairs, because it’s always demanding explanations… oh so TEDIOUS! I’d rather fly than slog through wet cement.

It doesn’t have to be an either/or. I enjoy the balance of a both/and way of being. My career as a healer began in Massage Therapy. I didn’t know I was using the Clairs to guide my hands until a teacher told me she would have to flunk me if I couldn’t explain why I did what I did. At that moment, I was forced to marry the logical mind to the intuitive one, and I’ve been working on that relationship ever since. I did pass the class; I was able to explain it, she confirmed I had done exactly what she needed (not what I was told to do.)

For more information on the Clairs, please read “Meet the Clairs.” If you have questions or comments, I’d love for you to post them here!

I know that you are right.

If it were not so, you would not defend your position so strongly.

From your position, experience, viewpoint, beingness… your belief is exactly right, for you.

Likewise, from my position, experience, viewpoint, beingness… my belief is exactly right, for me.

Declaring a viewpoint to be “wrong” is pointless. A viewpoint is an experience, and cannot be “wrong.”

Saying that something is “wrong” does not make it so.

So, I lay down my weapons of “attack” or “defense” and make a request.

May I come stand beside you?

Will you, as gently as you are able, help me to see what it is that you see?

I would like to see with you.

This is the way of peace.
♥ ♥ ♥
From my soul to yours, with love ~ Joanna Hackley Davis

I had errands to run, things to do around the house, and a client call set for 4:30 p.m. yesterday. As I finished up the household projects, I realized that I was only 70 minutes away from my call. I normally take 15 minutes to relax prior to a call, but knew that wouldn’t be possible today if I were to complete one of my errands. Somehow, I just knew the 15 minutes wouldn’t be needed.

“Twenty minutes there, twenty minutes inside, and twenty minutes back will give me ten to spare,” I calculated.

Traffic was heavy and the trip over was 25 minutes. Though my mind wanted to focus on doubts, it all still felt right. I could feel a positive hum in the vibration of the Universe. “I still have five extra,” I reasoned, and the energy resonated a little higher.

As I did my best to hurry around inside the store, I found several aisles blocked by other shoppers. I encountered the same elderly lady three times, who was deaf as a post and had nothing to do except peruse whatever was nearest. Rather than indulge impatience, I found a way around her the first two times, sharing a smile with her as I passed. The third time, her son shifted her cart out of the way. Again, smiles.

A child in a cart smiled and waved hello. I stopped to greet him, “Hello.” His grin widened. “Bye-bye!” he chortled as he laughed and waved. The energy bubbled higher, and I enjoyed the feeling of it tickling through me.

As I approached the checkout, I was still looking for two items on my list. “Can I help you?” an adorable clerk asked. She quickly pointed out the items, helped me place everything on the belt, then rang up my purchases. We chatted and laughed through the transaction. I left the store with a huge smile on my face.

Loading my purchases in the car, I realized I had only twenty minutes until my appointment. Rather than instilling anxiety, I felt a bit conspiratorial. I could feel an invitation from the Universe to laugh my way home. As much fun as I was already having, I was game to give it a go.

As I giggled my way home, the lights turned green. One by one, my giggles turned into little miracles. Out of the dozen or so lights, only one was red, and it didn’t stay that way for long.

Positive energy carries power. I’m noticing that when I giggle, the Universe giggles back, and all kinds of good things happen!

Oh, and I got home in plenty of time to put my goodies in the refrigerator before my call!

CELEBRATE EVERYTHING! it makes the Universe giggle!

The cliff of beliefs was formed in the unhealthy atmosphere of my childhood. (You too, maybe?) I was scared of a lot of things, and took responsibility for things that I had no control over. My mother’s unhappiness, my step-father’s moods, the weather, and a million other things. No wonder my life felt totally out of control.

I had 68 billion rules about how things “should” be in my world. After all, I lived in a scary, dangerous place. One can get terribly hurt in a place like that. Almost anything could go wrong… Of course, life is not friendly when lived in fear. The more I tried to control, the less I was able to.

By my mid-20’s, I was working full-time + overtime, managing a house, my finances, my fiancé’s finances, his brother’s finances, my neighbor’s relationship with her boyfriend, 20 field engineers, and doing my best to have a good relationship with my son. Serious boundary issues going on! The most important relationship, the one with my son, was breaking down and I need help. I finally went to a counselor.

At the time, I was totally immersed in victim mode. I was absolutely NOT a candidate for coaching, mentoring, or any other thing besides the professional help of a licensed counselor. It took a while, but I began to see there might be other ways of handling life.

Conveniently, things in my world were becoming dicier. It wasn’t that reality was breaking down. My denial was beginning to crumble and let the reality in! As I sat in her office one sunny afternoon, my mind was in the deepest pit of despair. Actually, a ledge of despair is more accurate, and my beliefs were moving in for the kill. I could either continue to dance along the edge of the ledge (and be consumed by a thousand screaming demons), or I could leap into the great abyss of the unknown (and try something new.)

I didn’t jump because I thought it would be fun. I jumped because I was terrified.

It took me nearly twenty years to realize that those weren’t demons at all. They were the most divine angels. They just knew I wouldn’t give up dancing along the edge of that cliff unless I was absolutely forced to. So, they put on their scariest faces and panicked me into making the right decision.

I jumped. The mental freefall felt like it lasted forever. Then I landed, safe.

The journey continued in a much more literal sense. Over the next six months, I made tremendous progress. Then I had another virtual experience. I had the opportunity to look back at the path I’d travelled. It was a staircase. Really, simply, just a beautiful staircase hewn out of stone. There was never a “great fall.” I had just never left the one level I knew, so it seemed like a freefall to me.

If you’re dancing along the edge of the cliff, don’t wait for the angels to look like demons. There’s a better way. If you ever wonder, I’m here to remind you. The journey is AMAZING!

Disclaimer: Please do not take anything I say as truth. Judge everything for yourself. What works for me does not necessarily work for anyone else. One size does not always fit all.

My personal experience is that mysticism is an outgrowth of faith, and faith is an outgrowth of learning, which comes from experience. How’s that for circular logic? I told you; this is a challenge for a mystic.

When I was little, I was taught “right” and “wrong.” It was very black and white. Example: “Don’t go in the street.” Going in the street had consequences I didn’t like (experience.)

As I got older, I found out that I could go in the street without getting run over by a car. I had “faith” that the cars would stop for red lights, I’d be safe in the crosswalk, etc. I basically had faith that the rules would keep me safe.

Of course, it’s never the rules that keep us safe, is it? People break rules. Sometimes, things just happen that are beyond the scope of the rules – a brake line fails, the driver can’t stop, and an accident happens. Yes, it’s more often human error, but sometimes that inexplicable element comes into play.

That inexplicable element is where mysticism comes in. It lets me experience the subtleties that the rules don’t address, the gut instinct that tells me not to cross the street right now, saving me from the driver who just had a stroke behind the wheel.

So, what does this have to do with active faith in Jesus?

My favorite college professor is a Christian Pastor and a mystic; I took his class on World Religions. He understands this struggle better than most. I have taken it farther than “the rules” say we can go.

As I studied world religions, I came to realize that all religions go through cycles. In the beginning of the religion, it is rules. In the Judeo-Christian line, this is represented by Judaism. Then, faith and grace are introduced. Using the Judeo-Christian culture again: Christianity. Mysticism is the next step. Granted, there are mystics in every religion, but there are also those, like myself, who choose to walk a little farther.

My early years in the Christian church were spent in the Bretheren in Christ sector (very close to Amish & Mennonite – lots of rules). My later experience was in Vineyard, which is both charismatic (faith/mysticism) and evangelical (rules.) The messages I got both inside the church and from other Christian sources were that I was to have “a personal relationship” with the Godhead.

Now, the people who used to say I have a prophetic gift don’t know what to do with me. I’ve stepped out of their comfort zone into relationship. I believe that is the heart of mysticism.

My personal belief is that the Love we call God “raises” us in much the same way as we raise our children. We are given rules so we don’t hurt ourselves and/or others. Then we are given the grace to find out how things are supposed to work; I call this the teenage phase. Then, in the phase of relationship that is much like knowing my own son as an adult, we get to live life, make mistakes, learn, and be loved. Sometimes I have loved my son in spite of what he does, often I love him even more because he has grown into a magnificently gentle person, and he is such a blessing in the world.

In the strictest sense of the word, I have been told that I am no longer Christian. According to “the rules,” I’m not.

I do not believe that Christ is the only way to know God. I don’t believe that God is so limiting.

God, as I know God, meets us where we are, as we are, and loves us both because of, and in spite of, ourselves. Love is the essence of the God I know. Love does not choose up sides and leave people out. Love makes relationships easy, not harder. Love does not engage in petty games and differences. Love looks for a reason to give, not a reason to take away. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” Yes, that is the passage from I Corinthians. In my little world, God is love and the perfect parent; always hoping, protecting, trusting, persevering, patient, kind. I no longer believe God is looking for an excuse to punish (keeps no record of wrongs); I believe that Love looks for any reason at all to give more love (rejoicing in the right.)

Love is why I don’t believe in religions. I believe in Love because I am a mystic and I feel Love. I experience the difference Love brings to my life.

My faith is stronger now than it ever has been. Mysticism has increased my faith, because I actually get to be in the experience instead of just discussing the theory.

Judged by the strictest Christians, I am not Christian. In my heart, I have the best relationship with the spirit manifested as Christ that I have ever had in this lifetime. I am in Love.

(original post appeared at www.Rx4JOY.com on November 19th, 2010)

My gut reaction is simply, “It doesn’t matter.”

Allow me to explain.

From the standpoint of increasing health and happiness, it is irrelevant whether past lives actually occurred or are figments of the mind. What is relevant to health and happiness is that we can recognize and resolve patterns that are causing harm in the now.

Therefore, the relevant question is “what can be gained through Past Life Regression?” That is a much sweeter question to answer, as I can point to outcomes for indisputable proof.

Past Life Regressions I’ve performed, as well as others I have studied, reveal patterns that emerge for each individual. Physical wounds show up in past life “memories”, freeing individuals to resolve current painful and disabling conditions. Behavioral patterns show up in succession to reveal the roots of current destructive patterns of behavior. Patterns are revealed, learned from, and many cases, situations resolved in less than an hour.

One woman contacted me for Past Life Regression because she was having problems with her love relationship; the reason for her call was a severe case of cold feet – she simply could not allow herself to commit to marriage, though her love relationship was very happy and healthy. During the course of our session, she produced three “memories.” Using coaching techniques to draw the relevant patterns from the memories, we discovered that she had a hidden belief that marriage meant she would become a slave to the relationship, ensuring a joyless life; she immediately realized that was not a current truth for her and the power of the belief dissolved. She also had a breakthrough regarding guilt, realizing that she could take time for herself, her beau, and their children without the pressure she had been putting on herself.

From my personal experience with counseling, and the experience of others’ I know, those breakthroughs were huge. They could have taken years of traditional therapy. Her case resolved itself in less than an hour. Less than a year later, she made a beautiful, joyous, radiant bride.

Hers is not the only case where Past Life Regression has netted immediate and long-lasting results. Read the works of Brian L. Weiss, M.D. There are countless cases of Past Life Regression and Future Life Progression bringing immediate clarity, focus, and freedom.

So, “Are past lives real?”

Who cares?

 Of course, I have my own personal experience. I’ll share that in time.

Originally posted at www.Rx4JOY.com 8/25/2010

For instance, as I was lying in my bed one night, I suddenly had an awesome awareness of the “fabric” of the Universe. It was as though I was comfortably resting on a huge woven blanket made of strands about an inch apart. The sensation of it curving around my weight reminded me of the images of planets and light energy from Astronomy class. Light bends around planets. The fabric of the Universe bends around us.

As I lay on that “blanket,” I began pulling the strands, one-by-one. With each strand pulled, I would get an image of “now” and an image of “then.” Some were past; most were future. Throughout all of it, I felt that I was receiving another access point to connect with the Divine. It’s just one of many ways the messages come through.

With so many messages coming so many ways, it can be difficult to find focus. After all, I live in a real house with a real roof on top (ok, technically, it’s a condo, but it still has a real roof.) I have real neighbors, real friends, a real bank account, and all the other normal real life issues that everybody else deals with. Oh, and I have real Adult ADD; at least, that’s what my doctor says. With so many inputs, finding focus can be challenging.

Or not.

Finding my focus is as easy as going back to that Divine Connection and remembering what I am most passionate about. That can also mean doing whatever inspires me the most at this very moment.

Living life this way does not make sense to people who are not sensitive to their own Source Connection. Measurable plans, goals, and objectives are very important for them, otherwise, there is no path to follow. I totally respect that they need those things. The truth is, I find them useful, too. However, my adherence to them is much more fluid.

My own path is like that Universe fabric, only it’s more of a stream. It feels like something flowing. My flow goes around boulders and over logs, rocks, and whatever else may crop up. I’m a bit like a leaf, bobbing along on a wonderful ride. Losing my focus is like getting stuck in an eddy off to the side. There I am, going around in circles, not getting a thing done.

That’s when I consciously choose to redirect myself back into the thrill of the flow. Back to my passions, to what inspires me, to what brings joy. When I do that, my passions miraculously find the people who resonate, and another Universal order is fulfilled.

From parking lot conversations, to coaching calls, to all of life, the magic of Divine focus shows up when I’m paying attention.

Note: After reading this post, my dear friend Lilly sent me a link to a NOVA program (click here) that gives me chills! It fully describes new scientific theories about the Fabric of the Cosmos! Program will air November 2, 9, 16, and 23, 2011 on PBS.
Yes, Universe, I’m paying attention! Thank you for all the blessings!