This is one of those big misconceptions about the work I do – that one has to be PSYCHIC to do it.  People approach me with this question all the time.  They’re skeptical.  They insist that I MUST be reading something else too when I read hands, that there’s some sort of aura or magical aspect about reading hands.

My beliefs and experiences around the whole phenomena known as psychic are varied and long-reaching, so it’s going to be tough to cover it all in one sitting, but I’ll try, if you’re willing to come along for the ride.

When I was a little girl I had some pretty wild and amazing dreams.  I really thought I could fly.  I felt infinitely connected to the very bright beings that seemed to waltz in and out, laughing, in my dreams.  I was sure that the dog and cat were telling me their stories as I told them mine.  There were no big lightning bolt moments and as far as I know, none of those laughing bright beings were ghosts.

I’d come downstairs and tell my parents about all this while we had breakfast.  Over grapefruit and cereal (balking about my mother trying to put bananas in there) I’d share these tales of laughing and love and flying.  They smiled and nodded and reinforced that they were JUST DREAMS. 

Fast forward to college and I started having these dreams again.  A little bit darker sometimes (but  it was college for Pete’s sake, I was darker then) but mostly just vivid REAL seeming dreams.  I also started getting the sense that there were other beings lurking around – especially in our little campus theater and the bell tower of the administration building.  In those instances, probably a little too much imbibing, sleeplessness and imagination!  During this time frame I noticed that lights started turning on and off when I walked by.  Mostly the outdoor walk-way lights – between the library and the dorm.  Sometimes lights inside some dorm rooms and classrooms would do the same thing, but not as often.  Remember, this was in 1983-5 – well before motion-detector lights were the norm. 

Other interesting dreams and events continued throughout my college career.  When I should have been studying I was taking out books on tarot and palmistry and practicing on my friends and their friends.  Friends of friends would sit down with me while I looked at their palms or read their cards and they’d leave exclaiming, “That was freaky – how the heck do you know those things?”

I didn’t have an answer.  And that freaked me out, so I got rid of the books and the tarot cards and stopped doing readings for anyone.

Between my 20s and mid-30s I really started exploring metaphysical concepts, philosophies and ideas.  I was frustrated and unfulfilled by attempts to find some clarity through more traditional routes (religion, group meditation) and ventured off on my own.  I’d meet people who said they were psychics or mediums and while I was intrigued by their stories and sometimes wanted desperately to believe what they were saying about me and my life – I never felt any real connection to them.  And most of their predictions were incredibly general, as were their description of me in my current life. 

Besides, I really wanted them to “see” me as someone who was psychic too.  Because I believed that if I WERE psychic, maybe I’d find the answers I’d been searching for.

In my late 30s into my 40s, I found better teachers.  Probably because I’d been clarifying my own beliefs for the better part of 15 years, I knew more about trusting my gut, then I had when I started my journey.  My teachers are people who are incredibly “normal” like me.  They sit in traffic, they worry about money and they (mostly) adore their families and friends.   They taught me about recognizing my own hunches and insights and how to discern if what I’m feeling or sensing is coming from me and my own wishful thinking or from Divine/Source/Spirit/Angels etc.

This is the point I’m at in my journey now – exploring all the various things people mean when they use the term “psychic,” as well as finding ways to honor my personal experiences with the Divine with my regular, daily life.

Am I psychic?  Depends on what you mean by psychic and what emotions, fears or dreams you attach to the word.  Words are, by their very nature, poor approximations of sensations and beliefs.  So I can’t say whether I’m psychic or not on your terms.  That’s okay with me if it is with you.

Do I read “other things” when I provide a hand reading?  Again, not sure exactly what you might mean by the question or the what supposed things I may be reading, so it’s hard to say. 

I do absolutely read your body language when and if we do a reading in person.  Frankly, it’s one of the main reasons I prefer to do readings over the phone!  You read body language too – depending on how you’re feeling about what I’m saying and what you’re seeing in my eyes, my shrugs and my stance, you’ll start a dance with me – to try to project more  of what you want to hear and less of what you don’t.  That’s human nature and to be expected.  It does impact your reading sometimes – after all, I’m human and I want you to be happy. 

When I read you in person, I have to go against my desire to make you happy by telling you what you want to hear and ignore your body language so that I can commit to the information in the hands.  Weird, but true – your body language often competes with your truth!

Your hands, when I focus exclusively on them, as opposed to what your body language is saying, tell me incredible stories about your life up to this point.  They do this through the actual data they hold – whorls, lines, scars, color and more.  They show me where you express your energy, where you’re stifled and where you are longing to go. 

Then something really cool happens (you may or may not think this is psychic) – I can come up with stories to share with you – anecdotes about situations to paint a picture of the concept in your hands.  I don’t actually know where these stories come from – sometimes I suddenly remember a friend or colleague and feel compelled to share a snippet of their story with you.  Other times it’s like I get a complete picture or movie of a story that will help me explain something to you.  What’s most cool is that you’ll usually say something like, “Wow! That’s freaky – the same exact thing happened/is happening to me!” 

Cool huh?  This time I don’t freak out and stop doing readings.  I look at it as having the perfect guidance for you coming through me because it’s what you need to hear right now in your life.  Sort of Divine jump-start to help you get over a hump, blaze a new trail or see the light at the end of the tunnel.  It’s as though there’s a little angel on my shoulder showing me things from my life and experience that not only I can relate to – but you can too – as a gift. 

I don’t know if that’s psychic or not, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!