Willa White's Blog

The past couple of weeks, I have had so much fun teaching the Aura classes.  And as usual at JCC, the students were wonderful!  In part One 'Understanding the Aura' , the students learned about the chakras, the layers of the aura, and how the aura related to its' environment and other people.  They also had the opportunity to see and feel their own aura, and well as see the auras of other students.  And my healing chakra-cleansing meditation blissed everyone out. In part Two 'Advanced Auras' , the students measured and sensed the aura using various techniques, practiced opening the chakras and cleansing the aura of unwanted energy, and seeing a partner's energy on a deeper level.  Many of them remarked how much they enjoyed measuring the aura with the pendulum. Students came away with the knowledge that they each have an aura and a soul.  They recognize they are on spiritual paths and are excited to practice what they have learned....

In conjunction with " Understanding Your Aura " (part one), I will be teaching Part Two of the Aura classes "Advanced Auras".  I regularly teach spiritual development classes at the Jamestown Community College (JCC) Jamestown NY campus. "Advanced Auras" - Wednesday October 29th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. After learning the basics of seeing auras, it is now time to experience auras with your other senses, especially touch and feeling. This class expands on the Understanding Your Aura class and provides more advanced techniques. Participants will learn and measure the dimensions of the human aura, practice how to sense and read the aura, understand the symbols of the aura, and discover ways to enhance your aura and awareness. Prerequisite : participants need to have taken the Understanding Your Aura class or be familiar with auras, chakras, placements, etc… To register, call the JCC Continuing Education Department at 716-338-1005. See you in class! F...

This month, I will be teaching a spiritual development class at the Jamestown Community College (JCC) Jamestown NY campus: "Understanding Your Aura" - Wednesday October 22nd from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Everyone has an aura, which is the energy field that surrounds our body and holds important information about our physical, emotional, and spiritual well being. By understanding the energy that surrounds you, you can begin to see and experience sensing auras. This is an interactive workshop designed for beginners where you will learn the basics about auras, practice how to see and sense auras, understand the meaning of the different colors, and discover ways in which you can cleanse and clear your aura for better health.  For more info, see my website's Coming Events page at : http://www.willawhite.com/Coming_Events.html To register, call the JCC Continuing Education Department at 716-338-1005. See you in class!

One of my favorite places in Lily Dale is the Lake Pavilion.  Some folks call it the Boat House, but it doesn't store boats so I call it by its' more graceful name.  In my opinion, it is a space that deserves grace because decades ago the swan house used to be next to it. Perched on the shore of Cassadaga Lake near the Maplewood Hotel, the Lake Pavilion has a bench that wraps around the inside perimeter and with the picnic table stationed there as well, there is plenty of seating.  Various folks fish from it - in fact, this summer my older son caught six fish in a row there (or maybe it was the same fish over and over, haha). In the more recent summers, my mother has taught a plein-air art class series at the Lake Pavilion and the Friday night drumming circle has gathered there. My family enjoys stopping there on our walks around Lily Dale.  My children ooh and ahh over the small schools of fish gathering for morsels.  Swans and kayakers gl...

This month, I will be teaching a spiritual development class at the Jamestown Community College (JCC) Jamestown NY campus: "Rediscovery of Women's Health:  a Personal Journey" - Wednesday September 25th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Join us in this special informational session for women only , where your instructor will give an overview of holistic techniques for reproductive health and talk about honoring our female cycles - from fertility, to pregnancy, to childbirth, and beyond. We will discuss many exercises, techniques, and informational resources that are available for women, including various forms of massage, bodywork, pelvic care, and fertility awareness. You will discover a new and dynamic relationship with your own body as it becomes guide, gauge, and a source of knowledge, vital radiance, and well-being. The concepts within this class reflect the instructor’s personal findings and experiences. Her goal is to raise awareness so that women are infor...

My family and I were enjoying a walk the other evening.  The weather was warm and thunderstorms were predicted.  You could feel the water hanging in the air waiting to be released. As we approached what seemed to be a stone in the road, it moved.  Actually, it hopped.  "A toad!" my son said with delight.  We continued on our walk.  Several feet later up the same street, my husband said, "There's a toad!"  And my son spotted two more nearby.  Each street we walked had toads in the road like stony sentinels of the evening.  In the semi-darkness of our twilight stroll, we greeted many toads.  It became a festive game of who-can-spot-the-toad-in-the-road first.  Their bumpy skin is so reminiscent of a stone in the darkness until they hop for the sides of the road, scrabbling to the safety of the grass. "Why are there so many toads?" my son asked.  "It will rain soon.  And they like the rain, " I replied....

The summer Season is flying by!  We have less than two weeks left.  It is incredible how fast the Time goes by.  Whether I am in readings with clients or snatching moments with family, Time seems to be rushing at warp speed.  I blink and hours have gone by.  A friend relayed a Sufi story to me recently about Time, so I am sharing what I recall with you.  Forgive me if I botch things in the retelling :) *** One day, a king asked a Sufi master, "What is Time?  Help me to understand it."   The master said, "Come over to this pool of water and I will show you."   As the king leaned over the water, the master grasped him by the neck and held him under water.  When the king surfaced, he was alone in an open sea.  Eventually, he spotted a fishing boat and swam to it.  The fishermen pulled him from the water.  When he tried to speak with them, he discovered they spoke...

Many of you are probably familiar with the gallery-style messages of TV mediums such as John Edward and James Van Praagh.  They give short messages from loved ones in Spirit to audience members.  Well... here at Lily Dale this type of message work has been done for over 135 years.  We refer to it as "public message work" or "stand up mediumship" because, rather than being in our individual offices (also known as private reading rooms), we are with a large group and we are standing.  We refer to them as "messages" because they are brief greetings lasting a couple minutes rather than a private reading session that can range from 30 to 60 minutes in length. During the Lily Dale summer Season , demonstrations of mediumship are presented by the mediums in the form of short messages to those in the audience. There is a chairperson for the event who calls the mediums one at a time to serve as message ministers at the service. Various kinds of mediums gene...

Season is in full swing here at Lily Dale.  There is an excitement and buzz about the various events and people are making their annual pilgrimage to Lily Dale.  Visitors frequently tell me about how Lily Dale makes them feel...   As soon as I entered the gate, I felt PEACE. When I see the gate, peace fills me. Walking around Lily Dales brings me peace. I feel renewed! This reading has brought me peace. I can just "be" here. Over 135 years of spiritual discussions, meditations, prayers, healings, and messages from Spirit have created a special energy at Lily Dale.  So many people feel the peace of this place! From the waters of beautiful Cassadaga Lake to the oldgrowth forest of the Leolyn Woods we are blessed by a gorgeous natural surrounding.  Add in a quaint village of summer cottages, year-round homes, and old historic buildings.  Blend in all the affirmations of personal connection to the Divine and awa...

Have I mentioned we have a vegetable garden?  We have a small plot in the Lily Dale community garden area so we can grow food for our family.  It is our space to nurture plants and experience the joy of reaping what we sow.  I agree with Gertrude Jekyll (a British horticulturist, garden designer, artist and writer): "A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust." Tilling, planting, watering, nurturing, and weeding all take time and effort.  Waiting for the plants to grow over the course of two or three months takes patience and time.  While I do this, the children play and dig in the dirt too.  My older son enjoys noticing the seedlings emerge from the soil, the white of the cauliflower peeking out among the leaves, the sweet pepper growing bigger on the plant, and the tender lettuce growing.  He ...

The month of June always goes by so fast for me.  June is jam packed with the normal work and family commitments, but it also has the added pressure of getting outdoor projects completed before the start of the summer Season here at Lily Dale. This year, we have to paint the house exterior and the porch floor.  While my husband scrapes, caulks, primes and paints, I am his gopher while watching over our 2 children.  Fun times ;)  Chasing after a very mobile 1 year old AND various project supplies that are in the opposite direction is not easy.  Thankfully, my 5 year old helps from time to time. Also, this year is the Woodchip Project at the Lily Dale Children's Acre.   In our effort to maintain the safety of the play areas, the Lily Dale Children's Committee (of which, I am the chairperson) entered into a labor intensive undertaking of moving a BIG mountain of playground woodchips.  Thankfully, w...

This morning, my husband was saying goodbye before heading off to work when my son said to my husband, "Goodbye, I love you and I'll miss you!"  Then, my son turned to me and self-corrected himself, "Souls don't miss anybody.  They only love."  How simple and sweet from the mouth of a child.  Love unites the Universe and keeps us connected with our loved ones.  My son has it right: We are souls and we love.  They love us and we love them.  Period. All other expressions of anger, fear, worry, and lack are illusions.  Souls only love.  Our higher self knows this at all times.  It is the human ego side of us that fears and feels like something or someone is missing.  Love is the essence and nature of everything. And YOU are loved at ALL times. 

Prepare yourself :  I am going to become philosophical about a teeny weeny peeble *smile*.  Tongue in cheek, I shall refer to it as the Philosopher's Pebble.  No, I am not talking about the legendary alchemical substance said to be capable of turning base metals such as lead into gold or silver, commonly known as the Philosopher's Stone.  I am talking about the stone that came into my Life today and made me think about my Journey in a different way.   Have you ever had a stone in your shoe?  Wellll, a stone snuck into my sandal today.  It is amazing how a little itty bitty piece of stone can irritate.   Sometimes it feels like a nail being driven into a soft part of the foot with each step.  Other times it rattles into a place in the shoe where you can't feel it.  And still other times it bounces to various parts of the foot like a pinball game, bing bing bing.   As I walke...

This week, I will be teaching a spiritual development class at the Jamestown Community College (JCC) Jamestown NY campus: "Understanding Your Aura" - Wednesday May 7th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Everyone has an aura, which is the energy field that surrounds our body and holds important information about our physical, emotional, and spiritual well being. By understanding the energy that surrounds you, you can begin to see and experience sensing auras. This is an interactive workshop designed for beginners where you will learn the basics about auras, practice how to see and sense auras, understand the meaning of the different colors, and discover ways in which you can cleanse and clear your aura for better health.  For more info, see my website's Coming Events page at : http://www.willawhite.com/Coming_Events.html To register, call the JCC Continuing Education Department at 716-338-1005. See you in class!

My five year old has been learning to read.  Gone are the days of my husband and I spelling words in an effort to have private discussions about matters pertaining to playgrounds, toys, p-i-z-z-a, and other fun things.  He finds words everywhere and reads them. This year, we have focused on increasing his understanding of the word sounds and sentence structure.  It is a delightful process of choosing books from the library that will positively challenge his growing reading abilities and then reading those books with him, encouraging him to increase his reading fluency and word recognition.  I enjoy hearing his observations about language and the written word.  He grasps many of the 'rules' and defends his pronunciation along with the rule. "Mommy, why is it .... when it should be ...."  Words such as: what - looks like w-hat such as you wear on your head, but we pronounce it w-hut such as a dwelling place great - appears l...

This month, I will be teaching a spiritual development class at the Jamestown Community College (JCC) Jamestown NY campus: "Your Inner Guide" - Wednesday April 30th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. There is a power in each of us which gives us strength, comfort, and peace. We use this power to some degree in our daily lives, yet few realize its full potential. In this class, learn how to use your intuition to receive guidance, wisdom, and daily upliftment; focus on your goals; understand events from a spiritual perspective; and increase awareness of your personal inner journey of enlightenment. In-class exercises will include a guided meditation and examples of how to develop your conscious spiritual connection. For more info, see my website's Coming Events page at: http://www.willawhite.com/Coming_Events.html To register, call the JCC Continuing Education Department at 716-338-1005. See you in class!

My baby son is 10 months old now and one of his favorite pastimes is climbing up the stairs.  More and more frequently, he heads to the stairs for his climbing exercise.  Sometimes we head him off at the pass and sometimes we allow him to climb with supervision.  I let him go at his pace, but I am his safety net for now. As I hovered behind him during one of his stairclimbing adventures, he stopped halfway up.  Usually he climbs up as fast as he can go.  He climbs with a smile on his face and jabbering his excitement as his ascends each step. This time, he paused to examine his pathway.  He intently studied the light and dark variation of the wood grain, touching the pattern with his little baby fingers.  He was fascinated by the knotholes in the wood, tapping at them. As he examined the steps, I found myself thinking about how we as humans often use the ladder or stairway as a symbol for spiritual development....

For those who attended my 'Language of Spirit' class on Friday March 7th, I wish to share the book quotes I read regarding the development of Mediumship. Speaking from the Spirit World, W.T. Snead said, "I do not transmit words.  I speak to you in the language of spirits, that is to say, I think, and the vibrations of my thoughts are transmitted by the intermediary of our spirit bodies.  Your spirit body then gives consciousness of my thoughts to your brain."  I feel this is an excellent way of describing the process of spirit communication.  Mediumship is about speaking soul to soul, using the faculties of the mind and thought to give expression to the impressions received from the spirit world. Another important point to remember is the great part which is played in mediumship by the subconscious.  All spirit messages come through the subconscious, which is the seat of the most wonderful organ of all, the memory... A mediums reacts to her ethereal envi...

The other day, a client came for a reading.  During the course of the session, the client's loved ones in Spirit explained how they were witnessing her life, the ways they noticed she was feeling overwhelmed, and they offered their loving support and encouragement.  And then I got the "nudge". Frequently, spirit loved ones offer their "two cents" about situations and sometimes they nudge me to share something I have learned about, read about, or experienced directly.  These are things they feel are helpful to the client.  And every time this happens, clients are very grateful to have the validation and discussion.  Because I prefer to be a clean slate for the reading and also because I need and deserve my down-time to live my own life, I make it a rule to NOT receive spirit information in advance of a session.  However, I still make room for Spiritual Natural Law. This means that I allow the Divine to work with m...

Next month, I will be teaching two classes:  "The Language of Spirit" Friday March 7, 2014 and "Mediumship Exercises to Enhance Awareness" Friday March 14, 2014 These classes are part of a 15 week series hosted by the Church of the Living Spirit in Lily Dale NY.  Each week, an experienced Medium will share their unique version and insights into spirit communication. Students may attend all, or one, or any number of Fridays  they choose. Those attending 8 of the 15 classes will receive a certificate of completion. This class gives the aspiring medium the benefit of our most experienced teachers and is for everyone interested in greater spirit connection. Wisdom of what lies within enhances our own lives and the lives of those around us. The expression of that wisdom through mediumship is the gift of this class.  A discounted price for attendance at all classes paid in advance will be $250.  Singular classes will be $20 each....

In honor Groundhog's Day and because I am wrapping my mind around his prediction of six more weeks of winter (SIX MORE WEEKS!), I am writing a diatribe about winter.  Maybe another time I will be able to write an account of the glories of winter, but today is not that day. Very often, clients ask me about the winters here at Lily Dale.  Even in the heat of summer, I can still shiver as I recall winter.  My standard reply is: "We get a LOT of snow!"  When I say it, I don't feel they truly comprehend what I mean or maybe it's because I haven't found the right way to convey it through words.  Add in this year's "polar vortex" and I'm ready to move to sunny Florida. So here we go... We live in a zone called the Chautauqua Ridge.  We consistently get loads of lake-effect snow dumped on us because of our close proximity to Lake Erie and our higher elevation.  On Route 60 (the major road that runs ...

Today I was driving home and I had the choice of two possible paths that would take me there. So I asked my soul which path to take - what path is the highest and best for me.  I immediately felt drawn in one direction. With that decision now made, I eased out of the store parking lot. I trundled along happily until I spotted up ahead the distinctive orange sign indicating men working. Ugh, I thought. Now I will delayed. I immediately cancelled that thought, replacing it with "My journey will not be interrupted for long and there is a reason that this path was chosen. I shall have the opportunity for another blessing in my life." The cars ahead of me began to slow and I noticed two more orange signs "Single lane" and "Road closed on the left". But I refused to be upset, I was calm. And I was right not to dread the path. Our lane was open and the cars flowed without stopping.  Barely a pause on the trip. A tree was being cut and removed. A...

Deepak Chopra shares in his book "Perfect Health": "There exists in every person a place that is free from disease, that never feels pain, that cannot age or die. When you go to this place, limitations which all of us accept cease to exist. They are not even entertained as a possibility. This is the place called perfect health." As a Spiritualist, I believe in personal responsibility and that individuals create their own reality according to Spiritual Natural Law. This also means that suffering is a choice. Suffering in our relationships, our finances, and our lives is a choice. When I first read about this concept, I was blown out of the water, especially in terms of Health. For when personal responsibility and spiritual natural law are applied to health, this means that suffering with sickness is a choice. On top of that, when one examines the cause of disease, it seems to involve a mysterious factor called "control by the host", meaning that we...