Many years ago I was invited to do readings for a book study group. I knew some of the people in attendance but some I did not. Everyone sat in a large circle and was eager to hear whatever messages would come through for them.
After everyone had received their messages, some people began to socialize while others lined up to speak with me. As people began to move around, my attention was drawn to a woman who was sitting directly across from me in the circle. I’d not met her before and my only impression of her was based on what came through in her reading.
As people lined up to speak with me, she sat there and held eye contact with me. Soon she joined the group of people who were waiting to talk to me. She was the last one and as soon as she sat next to me, I had a sinking feeling in my stomach. I immediately turned my stomach away from her. This was not a conscious decision, I just shifted in my seat.
She began to speak, launching into dramatic stories about her life. There was a common thread to her stories – she believed she was a victim in life. No one loved her. God abandoned her. Nothing ever went right for her. On and on she spoke. With each word, I felt a tremendous desire to check out of the exchange. I didn’t want to listen to her negative words. Mentally I was resisting her. And I know I was judging her, too.
Suddenly, two thoughts came to me :
- I recognized that she was in pain. She was hurting mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
- I acknowledged that she was a child of God, just like everyone else.
I asked myself “Why are you wanting to turn away from someone who is in pain, rejecting a child of God?”
I immediately felt a powerful shift. It felt like I fell in love with her spiritually. I embraced and accepted her as she was. I was suddenly very present with her, no longer wanting to walk away. Her words and energy no longer had a draining effect on me.
She was speaking the whole time that this shift was happening. She did not change in any noticeable way. But I certainly did. I felt like I was glowing, radiating love. It felt wonderful!
A couple of years later our paths crossed again. She seemed to be in a much better place in her life, no longer claiming to be a victim. I told her of the shift I experienced with her and of how grateful I was for what had happened. She acknowledged how much of a dark place she was in at that time and how since then she’d done a lot of self reflection and work on herself. She thanked me for telling her of my experience. I knew in that moment we both completed something important between us.
Every now and then I am reminded of that experience. Whenever I encounter someone I think of as a psychic vampire, a person who drains energy from other people, I remind myself that perhaps the other person is in some sort of pain and that they are Divine, just like everyone else. When I do this, my energy raises and I know I am not vulnerable to being drained.
When you feel low or negative within yourself, check in to see if some part of you is in pain and remind yourself of your own Divinity.
Blessed Journeys,
Matthew