I have been a medium and metaphysical student for a long time. For 38 years I have committed to being the best person and channel for the spirits that I can be. In 1978 my life was at a standstill and controlled by substances that dulled my mind and spirit. I hit a bottom and began a life based on healing and spiritual principles. I got clean and sober. I spent endless hours in self-searching. I also learned to meditate.

I had wonderful teachers, both physical and on the spirit side of life, who helped me on this journey. I was taught that Mother Earth is a classroom. I was told that life in physical form is an opportunity to learn lessons. I’d never heard that in seventeen years of formal education. The focus all that time had been on practical knowledge and skills. I was starving for a spiritual connection.

When I started this process of self-discovery I didn’t want to be responsible for my actions, my pain, or for cultivating my inner light. Truth be told I spent many years whining and complaining along the way. I thought I was very special and that others should immediately recognize my magnificence!

I had no idea what I had signed on for. I had no concept that, like you, I was a diamond in the rough that would take years, decades, and entire lifetime to polish. I had no inkling that there would be so many challenges. I didn’t understand that so much would need to be cut away in order for my inner light to shine through.

When I started following this implausible path I felt out of sync within myself, and, with the world. More than anything I wanted to know my “true purpose.” I needed to know why I was here on the earth and what it was I was supposed to be doing. I had a sense of destiny but didn’t realize how much work would be involved to get out of my own way to become a teacher and channel for the spirits.

We all want to know that we are fulfilling our purpose, our destiny. We not only want to know, we need to know. We need to know that we have made the most of our time here on the earth. We do not want to come to our last days wondering if we lived the life we came here to live. We want to know if the choices we’ve made were good ones. We want to know if the detours we took had meaning. We want to know if the decisions we made, the love we spent or withheld, and the careers we labored for made sense.

Once I cleaned up my physical act I was able to take responsibility for my life. Then, with the help of others, it became possible to heal wounds that were controlling me. Once I got over “ME” I started being of service to others. I discovered I could use my experience to help others along the way. Helping others and being of service helped me. Eventually I stopped asking the question: “What is my purpose? What am I here to do?” I didn’t need to ask the question any longer. I was living my purpose.

Each of us is responsible for connecting with our inner light. When we set time aside to meditate and go within we are cultivating our inner light. In so doing we hone our intuition and become clearer about our lives and our purpose. There are no short cuts to creating a spiritual life that works for us. I have found my path with the help and support of hundreds of friends and teachers along the way. Every experience, whether I deemed it good or bad, taught me something in this classroom of Life.