14th October.
Molly woke early, just as the light was shifting. It was their first day in Kerikeri, the furtherest point north they would visit on this trip.
Watching the ‘changing of the guards’ from night to day was her favourite time of the morning. Not able to resist the urge to see this special moment, she sat on a chair on the verandah of the accommodation cottage, and enjoyed the sensory experience. Surrounded by lush, subtropical bush she listened to the dawn chorus of Tui’s (Native New Zealand Bird with a beautiful repertoire), Paradise Ducks, native quails, pheasants, piwakawaka’s and watched the vibrant colours in the sky create a magical display, it was breathtakingly beautiful. As the sun broke the horizon and lit up the gardens around the cottage, she could see ‘Peter Rabbit’ as he did his rounds on the lawns which gently sloped down to a small lake, where birds and more bunnies basked in the warmth of the early rays of the sun amongst the mist rising off the dew-wet grass. The cottage was simple in design, high raked ceilings, large glass sliding doors. The decor was natural in colour, varying shades of browns & greens against a cream coloured wall, and it was embraced by the mature trees of so many different kinds, most of which she had never seen before. The leaves were huge, making her feel like she had woken in a scene from Alice In Wonderland. It was a very magical property. She felt excited about the day ahead, exploring a new town. A strong nudge had prompted her to visit the Stone Store, the first and oldest continually running store in New Zealand. But for now, she wanted to enjoy the magical morning from here on the verandah, as she took a little time to contemplate what she had been experiencing through her meditations. Her awareness of Life was changing dramatically. These experiences with Grace had begun to dissolve the mental barrier between her physical life and the presence of her soul. They had given her an insight into a whole other world that was so easily accessible, a glimpse that convinced her that Life does definitely continue beyond the death of the physical body. She had always believed that the life of a soul was eternal, but had no idea of the multitude of levels of existence which continue on, intertwined with the Life that is lived here on planet Earth. It was like she had discovered a crack in the fabric of the Universe and was able to see what goes on behind the scenes. And who was Grace really? She yearned to know more….
After breakfast, Molly and Will walked along the bush track down to the Stone Store, situated on the water front of the Kerikeri Inlet. It was peaceful now, but in the years that have passed much had gone on at this location. Initially it was a Maori settlement and then the missionaries came and built the house and the store. The Inlet provided an alternate transportation route to cutting through the think bush. Boats brought stores, produce and passengers from the ships anchored just outside the inlet, several miles away. The couples visit to The Stone Store was great fun. The energy there was playful and light. With a growing awareness of the Spirit World, Molly was able to sense the presence of the spirits who still resided in this building. They were happy that their environment had remained unchanged, The Store continued to trade as a store, everything as it should be (according to the people In Spirit). The current day staff dressed in period costumes and the shop was set up to display and sell the original types of products from its earlier days – nails, tools, fabrics, food…just about everything necessary for life in the 1800’s. There was a mischievous atmosphere and, looking around the store, Molly caught a glimpse of a Spirit Person behind the counter with the lady who now worked in the store. Playfully, he was smacking her bottom as she bent over to get something from the shelves beneath the original shop counter. He saw Molly and gave her a naughty wink, then vanished, his laughter lingering in the air.
It was late morning when Molly and Will began the drive home, heading southwards to Opinoni on the Hokianga Harbour where they stopped for lunch and a walk along the sandy Harbourside beach. In the distance, across the water, were massive sand dunes, golden in colour. They drove on to the Waipoua Forest to visit Tane Mahouta – one of the largest remaining Kauri Trees. The land was once covered by these awesome guardians of the forest. It proved to be a very spiritual experience being so close to this ancient warden, having observed life on earth for over 2000 years. The couple had an overnight stay at Kai Iwi Lakes, which contained the clearest waters Molly had ever seen, before heading south to Dargaville, across to the east coast to Orewa, Whangaparoa, Auckland and further southwards to Lake Taupo. They loved to stay at Lake Taupo, to enjoy the hot mineral spas and walking along the shores of the Lake searching for the hot water spots. Sometimes they stayed at The Chalet on the water front across the Lake from town. Each time they came here the weather was markedly different, and she enjoyed the variety of moods the Lake presented.
After their visit to Tane Mahuta, Molly felt the lingering presence of a spirit person in the back seat of the car. It was a young Maori warrior and he was desperate for them to stop, making his presence felt very clearly. At first Molly was daunted by this, and then she became fascinated at what she was witnessing. The surroundings of the car seemed to dissolve around her as she concentrated on the image of this Spirit Person standing before her, watching as he morphed from a boy to a young man. For such a seemingly young man, he looked tired and weary. He had had enough of the battles, the wars, the fighting, the deaths, the struggles. He wanted peace and he wanted to go Home. But he felt a responsibility to stay in this World Between Worlds, because there were others who were running amok, and he knew their energies were affecting those in the Physical World. He could see how it was affecting them and he did not like what he saw. He told Molly that these Spiritual Beings energetically influenced or ‘played’ the people in the Physical World like the pieces of an In-Spirit chess game. He felt responsible to help move these Spirit People on, to persuade them to go Home with him, up north to Cape Reinga and be set free from this world between worlds. He was demanding of Molly, his urgency strongly felt. He did not want her to leave Dargaville, because he himself had never left the area and had been told that he could not go past the town boundaries. Unsure of what to do or of how important this information may be, Molly said nothing and Will continued driving on towards the town. Crossing the town boundary she could feel the presence of warrior being pulled backwards, and then he was gone. Driving on towards Orewa, the car felt empty. Unsure of what she had encountered, Molly didn’t want to mention anything to Will, just yet. She was thinking of writing to Grace about it first and hopefully get a better understanding of what this encounter meant. They stopped overnight at Orewa and continued their journey south after the peak hour traffic through Auckland the next morning, and on towards Lake Taupo.
The following day, having settled into their accommodation at The Chalet overlooking Lake Taupo, Molly had time to reflect some more on the amazing experience she had just encountered on this part of the road trip. She wanted to share it with Will, after writing to Grace. He loved to listen to the stories she wrote, they inspired his art work, and helped their relationship to grow. The change in both of them was interesting, of how their perception of Life had shifted, especially for Will. Before meeting Will, Molly had immersed herself in the study of a variety of spiritual teachings, Esther and Jerry Hicks and the teachings of Abraham, Wayne Dyer, Eckhardt Tolle, Deepak Chopra, Caroline Myss, Florence Scovell-Shinn to name just a few. Her spiritual awareness grew and evolved as she had participated in workshops on many topics from Angels and Spirit Guides, yoga and meditation, breath work, spiritual healing, shamanism, the study of Reiki, homoeopathy, clairvoyance, channelling, all contributing to the improvement of the readings and healing therapies she had been providing in her little clinic above the cafe in Paraparaumu. She couldn’t get enough and was fascinated with this other world which seemed to be exisiting or coinciding with Life here in the Physical World. Now she had been given the opportunity to explore it more thoroughly, through this unique relationship with Grace. And again, came the question….But who was Grace?
Looking out of the window across the Lake, the clouds were low and it had been raining on and off throughout the day. The winter chill had gone from the air, the trees were now budding and flowering, Spring was making Her presence felt. Will was busy drawing. Molly felt relaxed and ready for meditation and writing, hoping to visit Grace in The Attic once again. She had become comfortable with this concept, this time travel or whatever you might call it. As her body relaxed with each conscious breath, the vision took her home, and she was standing at the bottom of the stairs. Her heart beating rapidly, excited to be doing this again, she walked purposefully up the stairs, the sensation of the worn timbers on the bannister railing felt very real beneath her hand. The door was partially open and the familiar fragrance of Nag Champa incense wafted down the stairs. She opened the door to find Grace sitting on the floor dressed in simple, loose, raw cotton clothing on a large cushion covered in decorative Indian fabric. The evenings were still cool enough to enjoy a fire, more for comfort than necessity.
“Come join me, we need to catch up,” Grace invited Molly, her voice calm and serene. This was true, it had been some time since they have been able to sit together, with Molly driving many kilometres before reaching the Lake. Joining her on the floor Molly could sense a heavy weight lift from her body. “Just breathe,” Grace reminded her, and each breath made her feel lighter and lighter, reminding her of this non-physical aspect of herself which she had been neglecting over the past few days, slightly distracted by the amount of driving they had to do. Will had a deadline that he needed to fulfil requiring them to return home soon. However, meeting here with Grace now reminded Molly of the importance of taking care of this precious part of herself. Meditation being just as important for her as physical exercise or yoga. Breathing slowly now, Molly’s physical body relaxed, she gave her undivided attention to this higher consciousness and vibrational state of being, and the vision she was now having. Through her imagination, creative visualisation, she could go anywhere, uninterrupted by Time or demands of the Physical World. She had learnt that this was her safe place, and that nothing could come into this space without invitation. The energy in her heart felt expansive. It was such a wonderful sensation.
Keeping her eyes closed, Molly watched the vision in her mind unfold before her, of a swirling vortex of energy, drawing her in, the energy having an irresistible pull to it. It was hypnotic, magnetic. Surrendering to its seductive forces, she allowed herself to fall into it, feeling the sensation of being gently swirled round and round, suspended, supported, held, free to move in whichever direction she desired, face up, face down, swimming, floating effortlessly. It was awesome, like being in a gravity free environment. Molly realised that she could push the walls of this space outwards, expand the room, changing its shape purely through focussed thought, as she lay still, her ‘body’ levitating. She imagined the walls moving outwards, and watched on fascinated as they responded to her thoughts. She imagined a bunch of freesia’s brightly coloured, with a delicious fragrance. She could see and smell them, clearly, vividly. Then she recalled a memory of her old cat Oscar. Of how he would curl up in her lap, snuggling into her purring, his soft black coat against the bare skin on her arms, and now in this space, it felt so real! And it was, because in that special space, in the World Between Worlds, imagination and thoughts are very real.
“So what is it that you would like to experience now?” Grace’s voice prompted her. She and Will had done so much this year, what with their travels, finding the house, and Will now working locally. They loved the life they were living, and were aware of just how much of it they were creating with imagination, creative thoughts, intention and having fun doing it together. Molly had discovered that thoughts do become things, daydreams can become reality. Enjoying the freedom of floating, Molly wished to stay a little longer in this magical realm of imagination. Her mind was free, her body was free, and her soul was free. Everything was being taken care of and everything would always working out perfectly for them. She had realised the power of creative thought, that could be accessed simply through meditation and creative visualisation. Molly felt the shift in her energy and the weight of her physical body, she became aware of her body as it sat in the armchair in The Chalet. Opening her eyes, the view out the window overlooked The Lake, the clouds low and heavy with rain, the lights of the township across the water twinkling like stars. All was well, all was very well indeed.
18th October.
The next morning Molly woke early. Leaving Will asleep in bed, she made a cup of tea and sat in the cane chair which faced the window looking out over The Lake. As she watched the variety of colours of the sunrise, her mind drifted, contemplating what had been happening over the past few weeks. She smiled to herself, recalling the very interesting events she had experienced and the realisation that she can see dead people! For the first time, without being in a state of meditation, Grace’s voice popped into her head. “Well, actually they are not dead people, they are very much alive people, they just no longer have a physical body!” Grace chirps excitedly at Molly’s realisation. “And the sooner more of you remember that the Physical World is only a minor part of your soul’s existence, then more peace shall be experienced amongst humanity, and there will be less fear. Spiritual Beings having a Human Experience – remember!”
Molly looked around the room to see if she was able to actually see Grace, but the room was empty except for Will’s body, still sleeping soundly, softly snoring in the bed. Her eyes were drawn back to the peaceful view across the lake, and she remembered that they were on the last stretch of driving before returning to their home. This made her feel excited, it had been three weeks since they drove away from their much loved home. She wondered what had been happening in the garden and which plants would be flowering now. Will had been preparing the garden beds for vegetables, so a trip to the plant nursery was something they could do on their return. And then there was the loft studio to complete. She sneaked back into bed and snuggled up next to Will’s warm body, waking him gently, as it was time to have breakfast and pack up for the last drive home.
The Attic 