My Life As a Medium

by Betty Shine

  All kinds of animals have passed through my healing room: mice, hamsters, birds, lizards, dogs, cats, and many more. Many of them were brought by children who had acquired the animals but had no idea how to look after them. I found myself educating not only the children but also their parents, and many pets survived who would otherwise have gone to an early grave.

  Many dogs who had been given a life sentence by a vet were cured by healing. I believe that every doctor and vet should have a list of healers they could recommend to their clientele, if only to ease their own suffering when their pet has passed away. People need to grieve, and they need counselling, and healers fit this bill. Why then are their services not available? It is a grave mistake to leave people to go home and grieve alone. In many cases, their pet was the only friend they had. They need to know that the animals survive, albeit in another dimension, and that they can still talk to them. We should not ignore this issue.

  I have been able, through mediumship, to help new owners of animals that have been rescued, by giving them a detailed description of the animal’s past history, enabling them to understand the psyche of their new pet and prevent them from making any mistakes. I remember one dog in particular, called Mack. I linked to his past and, among other things, found that he had frequently had his meal taken away by a child in his previous family. When he had eventually bitten the child, out of frustration, the family had given him away. The child should have been severely reprimanded but wasn’t, and this situation left the dog with a difficult mental attitude regarding its food. I picked up other small things that would help the new owners gain an insight into the working of the mind of their new pet. Later, they told me that they had carried out all of my instructions, and had eradicated many of the small idiosyncrasies I had identified but there was still no way that the dog would let anyone touch its food.

  Whenever I was asked to give an animal absent healing, I would first of all link in with it. This enabled me to diagnose the real problem and give the appropriate healing. Imagine my surprise when I found that I could reach them telepathically and ‘listen’ to their problems. It really was no different from a telepathic link with a human being, as their grievances and their love were made known to me in the same way. The owners found this hilarious, but when the laughter had subsided, admitted that the description of their animal’s psyche was extremely accurate. One lady was so taken aback, she said, ‘Fancy the little bugger telling you that. He knew it was supposed to be a secret!’

  One dog, who was suffering from crippling arthritis, told me that he was ill because his owner had never taken him for a walk. When the lady called to give me the latest health report, I explained what had happened. However, although she was full of remorse, and told me that as a business woman she had never been able to find the time to walk the dog, she still insisted that it would be very difficult for her. She told me that she had quite a good-sized garden, and thought that would suffice. When I asked her, in the nicest possible way, how she would feel if she were not to see the outside of her home for three years (which was the age of the dog), she realized how cruel she had been, and was full of remorse. ‘I’ve been using him for protection, and haven’t given a thought to his health,’ she said. I suggested that she should hire a dog walker, which, to give her credit, she did. It took three months of healing and gentle exercise to cure the animal of its arthritis. Within six months he was running around, fit and healthy.

  There are things that I am not told when I am asked to heal animals and, for that matter, people. With my diagnostic ability I have wondered why the healing was not working. Healers have been subjected to an enormous amount of ill feeling when healing has not worked, and because there are so many factors involved, it is necessary for anyone who owns an animal to assess the environment in which they are living. If this does not pass the necessary requirement, then something must be done about it. There is always an answer.

  If an animal owner is old or ill, they should contact the local animal welfare groups and ask if someone can be found who would be willing to walk their dog, or find a friendly neighbour to do this. I know many people would love to help, but you must ask.

  Throughout my teens, I had only one dream, and that was to become a vet. It was never to be. But it seemed that I was destined to heal animals, and so I became a spiritual vet.

  Whenever we hear of dangerous dogs, I believe that it is human beings who have made them so. That is not to say that they deliberately set out to do so. It is a mixture of ignorance and stupidity, and sometimes, unbelievably, too much over-indulgence. We still have a long way to go in educating the public on the care of animals, but I think we are getting there.

  In the end, we all have to right the wrongs we have committed, there is no escape. If this was more widely known, I think many people would think before they act.

  Cruelty to any living thing is a moral and spiritual crime, and ways must be found to end the terrible suffering that so many living creatures have to endure. Because we have made them dependent upon us, it is our duty to care for and protect them. This is what thousands of people around the world are trying to do, and every single person can help in some small way.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  The past ten years had been the happiest of my life, and the presence of my spiritual mentors was a constant reminder of just how much I had changed in those years. I no longer questioned the whys and wherefores of the situation in which I found myself; I saw the results, and they were good enough for me. My spiritual medics could have done no more, because through me they had fought for the lives of so many, and won. Those who could not be cured were given peace and harmony, enabling them to make the transition to the spirit world in a dignified manner. My mediumship had evolved beyond all recognition, and the finest minds were able to communicate their thoughts and diagnoses. I knew at some time that the book I had been told I would write would have to be written, but not yet. There was another unexpected development, one that changed my life completely.

  I had been living with a new partner for about four months when he told me that we would have to move from Sutton to Sussex. I was horrified at first, but soon realized that it was too far for him to commute for any length of time.

  I knew nothing about Sussex. Apart from the years spent in Spain, I had always lived in Surrey, where the countryside and the hills had always been a favourite with my family. I thought of the wonderful walks we used to take through the beech woods, with the crackling leaves underfoot, and the smell of damp peat as the children and dogs trampled around in the undergrowth. Unfortunately, reminiscing did not help. It just reduced me to tears.

  I was going to have to leave my lovely home, which was filled with so many memories – especially of the phenomena that still filled me with a childlike wonder, and which had made me realize there is so much more to life than the trivia which often surround our existence.

  I felt guilty about having to leave my local clientele, who had all become friends. Although I had taught them self-healing, many were too set in their ways to be able to put this into practice, and inevitably needed to talk to me from time to time.

  I thought of the hundreds of children I had seen, and the many animals that had received healing. They had all left a part of themselves in the ether of my home. The physical parting would be heartbreaking enough, but how could I leave behind the very soul of my present existence, namely, the spirit world?

  I agonized for weeks, hoping that I might receive some guidance from my spirit friends, but nothing came. For the first time in all these years, I was alone.

  It was a desolate feeling. I had also suggested to my partner that we meet at weekends, but he would not agree. It was not one of my most brilliant ideas, but I was clutching at straws. I needed to make a decision, and it became obvious that I had to move to Sussex.

  I contacted all my clients and told them of my decision. It was the most difficult task I have ever performed, because it made so many people miserab
le. They all insisted that they would try and make the journey to my new home, but I knew that for the majority, this would be impossible. Most of them booked a last appointment just to say goodbye, and as they left the tears flowed. The emotion of those moments left us all speechless. I cried more during those weeks than I have ever done in my life. I never wish to go through such an experience again.

  When the time finally came for me to leave, I walked around the rooms, placing my hands upon the walls where I had seen so many faces. I walked to and fro in the large hall, where the funnel of energy had appeared. I sat on the couch in my healing room and remembered all the magical moments I had shared with so many thousands of people. I remembered the survival evidence which had produced so many tears of happiness and hope, and which had given the terminally ill the courage to make the most of the rest of their lives – in the knowledge that they were going to survive in another dimension.

  When I left my home, I was too distressed to look back. I wondered whether my spirit friends would make themselves known to me again in the new house, but at the time I doubted it.

  If it had not been for my newly acquired bitch Tessa, and my cat Sally, I think I could have quite willingly drowned in my grief.

  When we arrived at the small cottage at the foot of the South Downs, with its far-reaching views and large garden, I tried to imagine our lives in this environment, and conjured up all kinds of wonderful images of days lounging about in the sun, watching Tessa revel in the freedom of her new surroundings. So much for the dreams! It was October when we moved in, and on the day we arrived the weather changed for the worse. Not a good sign. Because it had been necessary to make a quick move, there had been no time to arrange for a cooker, telephone, coal – as there was no central heating – and, too late, we discovered that the front and back doors were so flimsy that they barely stopped the wind that was howling around the house. Sitting in front of the window, with a blanket around my shoulders, it became obvious that without secondary glazing, I would probably die.

  My friends would have been horrified had they been able to see me, knowing as they did my love of a warm and comfortable home. No wonder my spirit friends had been silent. They probably thought I was out of my tiny mind and no longer worthy of their attention. And I would have agreed with them!

  Worse was to come. When we tried to fit both sets of belongings into the rooms, it became obvious that even if we could have reduced the furniture to a third of its size, it was not going to fit. In all fairness, I have to say that my partner had very little, and even though I had given away the largest pieces of furniture, I had still brought too much with me. We spent the first night miserable, cold and hungry. My cat didn’t like it there, either. Okay, I know I had been spoiled, but this was ridiculous!

  Eventually, over a period of six months, we modernized our new home, but not before I was carted off to the local hospital where it was found that I was suffering from patches on both lungs because of a viral infection. I knew then that the cottage would not be a part of my future life.

  The worst part of all this was the feeling that I had lost touch with my spirit friends. I was now embroiled, through my partner, in a materialistic world, and every day it seemed to be taking away more and more of my soul. Losing touch with the spirit world made me realize what a comfort they had all been and, the more I thought about the move, the more I realized that I had made a terrible mistake. Why had they not warned me? It could have been that with so many personal problems I simply had not been listening.

  So I sold my home in Sutton, and this meant that we were able to move to a larger house nestling at the foot of the Downs. As it was only half a mile from the cottage, it did not take us long to move, and as it was now April, and the sun was shining, my hopes of a happy future were raised.

  Within a few months Tessa and Sally had a new friend, a Yorkshire terrier named Flossie.

  I made friends with one of our neighbours. Everything seemed to be going well, until she found out that I was a medium. We never spoke again. I felt as though I had been transported back to the middle ages.

  I was able to put one room aside for healing, and started to work again. I was delighted when my spirit friends returned in force. I had missed them.

  Our lives were such that it was necessary to entertain visitors from abroad, and it was on these occasions that my mediumship came to the fore. It seemed that everybody had family and friends who wanted to communicate. I did not mind passing on the messages, but did they have to come through during dinner? Having delivered the survival evidence, I found that my food had gone cold and I was left hungry. Not good timing at all. But, on the positive side, I had made some people very happy.

  In particular, I remember one Greek agent. A family member made it known to me that he wanted to communicate. I asked the agent if he would be interested, and he said he would be delighted, as he had never had any experience with mediums before. He confirmed all the messages that I gave him. Then he was told that he was going to lose his right-hand man within two months, and the real reason for the visit from his spirit friend was to allow him to make suitable arrangements so that his business would not suffer. He could not believe this. He told me that the person in question had been working for him for twenty or more years, and that he was totally loyal. Before he left I asked him to think seriously about the message.

  Six weeks later he called to tell me that the man had just given notice, and that he was going to leave in two weeks. Exactly two months to the day. Because he had not believed the message, he had not prepared himself; inevitably, for a little while the business did suffer.

  Because these sessions only filled a little of the gaping hole that had been left by the absence of my close friends and ex-patients, my thoughts turned more and more to the book I had wanted to write. I decided that I should delay no longer and – spurred on by the mediumistic message telling me that I would be healing through the written word – I picked up a cheap notebook and began to write. First I had to choose a title. Thinking about the minds that attached themselves to me, when giving survival evidence, I decided to call it Mind to Mind.

  I remember that first day. I sat for hours, writing like a lunatic – mainly because I was returning, if only in spirit, to my home in Sutton. As I relived those happy years, I felt that I had been born again.

  After that first day, I allotted so many hours a day to my writing. On the fifth day I heard a voice say, ‘Your voice will be heard.’ This gave me tremendous incentive, because I knew by that simple message that the book was going to be a success.

  It was also the beginning of a new cycle of phenomena. My old friend Father Time reappeared and spoke about the danger of more diseases from outer space descending on this planet because of the earth’s sheath. I must admit that I had no idea what he was talking about, but it became clear when the whole world was made aware of the holes that were appearing in the ozone layer.

  Whilst I was writing Mind to Mind I was able to shut out the materialistic side of my life for a while, and this enabled me to return to my regular meditation periods. I had felt so desolate without them.

  Our first spring and summer in the new house had been pleasant but, as autumn approached, and the winds howled along the foot of the Downs, my heart sank. Remembering my first nightmarish winter, I had a sense of foreboding, which was realized, only too soon. The house was at the end of a long run of the Downs, and as the wind raged from the Steyning Gap, along this particular range, it hit us at full pelt. We discovered that our windows were inadequate, and once again, we had to consider double glazing. To go through this hell twice in eighteen months was just appalling. When the workmen arrived, they took all the windows out at the same time, assuring us that they would be replaced by evening. Unfortunately, some of them were the wrong fit, so we were left with tarpaulins that crumpled under the onslaught of the gales. This, coupled with the fact that we were faced with a morass of cement outside the house, where the builders had st
arted on the new hard standing for cars, left me in a state of total despair.

  As the winter wore on, and the back door of the house was practically torn off its hinges every time it was opened, I made a decision. Come hell or high water, we were going to move.

  So it was, that in snow three feet deep, I saw the seventy-foot-long bungalow nestling in its own grounds, the surrounding village protecting it from the fearsome gales. It was love at first sight. In a dreamlike state I wandered in and out of the rooms. The discovery of a complete one-bedroom flat, at the far end of the bungalow, filled me with ecstasy. This was going to be my new healing sanctuary!

  Apparently, the previous owner of the property had been a well-known artist, and although she was in her nineties and had lost her sight, she had insisted on living there with her housekeeper until her demise. This information helped me a great deal when the phenomenon of the buzzers began. I was alone one day when the monotonous tone of a buzzer came from the flat. On investigation, I found the contraption high up on the wall of the small hall. A few seconds later the noise stopped and all was peaceful again. I set about trying to find out how this buzzer was activated, and decided to start with the lounge as this was the room in which the artist had spent a great deal of her time during her last years. There, beside the fireplace, was a bell pull. Fascinated, I decided to leave everything intact; after all, I was not about to upset the lady, as it was obvious that she still felt that it was her domain.